Bluegrasses

Flowering Plants. Monocots

“…Species of Poa are often polyploid, and hybridization and apomixis are common (e.g., Huff 2010;Rodionov et al 2010;Soreng et al 2010). The morphological characters that separate the species are subtle and generally quantitative.…”

Genetic mapping in polyploids

“…Apomixis has been shown to be under genetic control in multiple species (reviewed in (Bicknell and Catanach, 2015)), with a number of recent genetic mapping studies in tropical polyploid forage grasses such as the tetraploid Brachiaria decumbens or the hexaploid Urochloa humidicola revealing major QTL underlying the trait (Vigna et al, 2016;Worthington et al, 2016). A nice example of where apomixis is actively used in polyploid breeding is in Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis) (Huff, 2010). In this species, apomixis is the norm whereas true outcrossings are termed "aberrants".…”

“…In this species, apomixis is the norm whereas true outcrossings are termed "aberrants". Techniques to increase the production of aberrants during the breeding cycle are used (Huff, 2010;Bradshaw, 2016), following which superior lines are selected. Most progeny are found to be apomictic once more, resulting in immortal maternal lines which can subsequently be marketed as stable F1 hybrids.…”

“…Although it might seem like an ideal scenario, the breeding of apomicts presents its own set of challenges, particularly if the number of aberrants generated is too low to allow crossing. Aneuploidy may also accompany apomixis as it is not selected against during meiosis (Huff, 2010), which may lead to problems in future crosses if the aneuploid is anything other than the apomictic parent. Finding sources of apomixis genes in related and crossable species is a further challenge, if transgenic approaches to introducing the trait are not feasible or acceptable.…”

Development of ent-kaurene Oxidase-Based Conserved Intron Spanning Primers for Species Identification in the Genus Poa (Poaceae; Bluegrass)

“…is a dioecious, cool-season grass with exceptional heat and drought tolerance; however, it lacks higher levels of tiller density and a finer leaf texture that are desirable for residential and athletic field applications [1]. Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.) is one of the primary cool-season turf species used on home lawns and sports fields because of its excellent turf quality and its ability to reproduce through apomixis [2]. The hybridization of Texas bluegrass and Kentucky bluegrass can bring together the traits of heat and drought tolerance with increased turf quality and apomixis [3][4][5].…”