Collection and Morphological Analysis of Korean Wild Chrysanthemum zawadskii and C. makinoi

Abstract

Over the course of seven years, different varieties of Chrysanthemum zawadskii were collected from 30 regions of Korea. All C. zawadskii varieties exhibit ray flowers that were either white or pink regardless of the collection region. However, they were classified into three groups according to the shape of the leaves, with large differences in the leaf shape (Group 1: C. zawadskii, Group 2: C. zawadskii with a slender leaf, and Group 3: C. zawadskii var. yezoense). A different species of Chrysanthemum called C. makinoi was assigned to Group 4. In terms of location, Group 1 can be found throughout Korea, while Group 2 is found primarily in highlands and confined locations such as Mt. Baekdu, Ulleung Island, and Mt. Halla on Jeju Island. Group 3 is found near the coast and has broad leaves with minimal splits, whereas Group 4 has been identified in Gangwon Province, a limestone location, with a variety of leaf shapes. One region was chosen for each group for an extensive comparison (Group 1: C. zawadskii var. latilobum from Mt. Hwangmae, Group 2: C. zawadskii var. lucidum from Ulleung Island, Group 3: C. zawadskii var. yezoense from Geoje Island, and Group 4: C. makinoi from Jeongseon). When morphological traits were compared by group, C. zawadskii var. lucidum (Group 2) had the widest flower diameter at 60.35 mm. Moreover, C. zawadskii (Group 1) and C. makinoi (Group 4) had the largest leaf length and width at the base, with no significant differences in the chlorophyll content. The cauline leaf of C. zawadskii var. yezoense (Group 3) had the greatest leaf length (38.79 mm), width (37.14 mm), and chlorophyll content (37.13 SPAD). However, the difference was not statistically significant when compared to the basal leaf. Ultimately, the results of this study showed that C. zawadskii var. latilobum (Group 1) and C. zawadskii var. yezoense (Group 3) were hexaploid, C. zawadskii var. lucidum (Group 2) was tetraploid, and C. makinoi (Group 4) was diploid. This research was carried out as part of a standardized procedure aimed at determining resources for use as basic data for Chrysanthemum genome research and functional breeding.