The formation of a lignified sclerenchyma ring that efficiently reduces the digestibility of the stem was not related to apex development but rather to a requirement for mechanical support. The observed good freezing tolerance of reproductive timothy tillers could be one important adaptation mechanism ensuring high yields in northern conditions. Both VRN1 and VRN2 homologues required a vernalization signal for expression so the development of yield-forming tillers in regrowth was regulated independently of the studied genes.

Mixed cropping, including intercropping, is the oldest form of systemized agricultural production and involves the growing of two or more species or cultivars of the same species simultaneously in the same field. However, mixed cropping has been little by little replaced by sole crop systems, especially in developed countries. Some of the advantages of mixed cropping are, for example, resource use efficiency and yield stability, but there are also several challenges, such as weed management and competition. The boreal-nemoral region lies within the region 55 to 70 • N. In this area, for example in Finland, the length of the thermal growing season varies from >105 to over 185 days. Typically, variation between locations and years is marked. However, during the year, there can be a wide range of temperature extremes between −70 and +30 • C. The majority of cropping systems in this region are usually monocultures, except for forage grass mixtures. The possibility of having several crops in a mixture is very challenging in the region due to the short growing season and extreme cold temperatures, meaning that crop earliness and overwintering capacity are a considerable restriction for year-round mixed cropping. A further restriction is the quality requirements set by the industry. Our review will explore a range of mixed cropping possibilities for the boreal-nemoral region, including different possible combinations of spring, winter, perennial, biennial, catch, and cover crops. The reviewed mixed cropping systems could considerably improve the sustainability and efficiency of crop production.

Timothy (Phleum pratense) is a widely grown perennial forage grass in the Nordic region. The canopy consists of three tiller types, of which the stem forming vegetative elongating (ELONG) tiller and generative (GEN) tillers contribute the most to dry matter yield. In this study, the regulation of tiller formation by vernalization, day length (DL) [12 h, short day length (SD); 16 h, long day length (LD)] and gibberellic acid (GA) was investigated in two timothy cultivars. Vernalization resulted in a shift of ELONG to GEN tillers. No vernalization was required for the development of ELONG tillers but SD strictly arrested stem elongation. Vernalization is an important regulator of tiller development but it seemed to be upstream regulated by DL. LD was essential for floral transition and could not be substituted by GA and/or vernalization treatments. Genotypic variation was found in the development of GEN tillers. The ability to produce GEN tillers was associated with significant upregulation of PpVRN3. PpVRN1 expression peaked at the time of vegetative/generative transition, and PpVRN3 after the transfer to LD, suggesting them to have similar functions with cereal vernalization genes. PpVRN1 alone was not sufficient to activate flowering, and upregulation of PpVRN3 possibly together with PpPpd1 was required. Although vernalization downregulated PpMADS10, this gene did not act as a clear flowering repressor. Our results show that flowering signals alter the tiller composition, so they have important effects on yield formation of timothy.

Severe von Willebrand's disease (VWD) type 3 is a rare autosomal-recessively inherited bleeding disorder, showing considerable genotypic heterogeneity. We investigated the phenotype in correlation with the genotype in Finnish type 3 VWD patients. Ten patients previously diagnosed with VWD type 3 treated at the Coagulation Disorder Unit in Helsinki University Hospital were re-evaluated for bleeding tendency and treatment. Phenotypic characterization included coagulation and platelet function testing confirming the diagnosis. The genotype was assessed by initial screening for the common c.2435delC mutation and subsequently if needed, by analysing all 51 coding exons of the von Willebrand factor gene. Our result confirmed the diagnosis of type 3 VWD for all 10 patients. We discovered two common mutations: nine of the 20 alleles (45%) were found to carry the c.2435delC frameshift mutation, previously described to be frequent in countries surrounding the Baltic Sea. The nonsense mutation c.4975C>T (p.R1659X) was found on 8/20 (40%) of the alleles. In addition, three novel mutations, a potential splice site mutation (c.874+2T>C) and two frameshift mutations (c.1668delC and c.2072delCCinsG) were found. Seven patients were homozygous and three compound heterozygous for the reported mutations. This study indicates that mainly two mutations (c.2435delC and p.R1659X) cause the majority of type 3 VWD in Finland. This result sets future standards for the genetic testing among the Finnish type 3 VWD population.

Timothy is a perennial forage grass grown commonly in Boreal regions. This study explored the effect of vernalization and photoperiod (PP) on flowering and growth characteristics and how this related to changes in expression of three flowering related genes in accessions from different geographic origin. Large variation was found in accessions in their vernalization and PP responses. In southern accessions vernalization response or requirement was not observed, the heading date remained unchanged, and plants flowered without vernalization. On the contrary, northern types had obligatory requirement for vernalization and long PP, but the tiller elongation did not require vernalization at 16-h PP. Longer vernalization or PP treatments reduced the genotypical differences in flowering. Moreover, the vernalization saturation progressed stepwise from main tiller to lateral tillers, and this process was more synchronized in southern accessions. The expression of PpVRN1 was associated with vernalization while PpVRN3 accumulated at long PP. A crucial role for PpVRN3 in the transition to flowering was supported as in southern accession the transcript accumulated in non-vernalized plants after transfer to 16-h PP, and the apices transformed to generative stage. Differences in vernalization requirements were associated with variation in expression levels of PpVRN1 and PpVRN3, with higher expression levels in southern type. Most divergent transcript accumulation of PpMADS10 was found under different vernalization conditions. These differences between accessions can be translated into agronomic traits, such as the tiller composition of canopy, which affects the forage yield. The southern types, with minimal vernalization response, have fast re-growth ability and rapidly decreasing nutritive value, whereas northern types grow slowly and have better quality. This information can be utilized in breeding for new cultivars for longer growing seasons at high latitudes.