Genetic structure in the perennial grasses Lolium perenne and Agrostis curtisii

Warren, John; Raybould, Alan; Ball, Tina; Gray, Alan; Hayward, M. D.

doi:10.1046/j.1365-2540.1998.00426.x

Cited by 21 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Moreover, locally successful cultivars of L. multiflorum such as AXI and ORY have been derived from ecotype populations after only a few cycles of selection (Nüesch 1990;Boller et al 2002). Similar to our study, Warren et al (1998) also reported a genetic similarity between geographically separated and widespread Lolium perenne L. populations, but they found no such association for the rarer grass species Agrostis curtisii. Since the L. perenne populations were sampled from old, unimproved pastures, the authors suppose an extensive gene flow from populations of sown fields as a reason for the similarity of the populations.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Value of permanent grassland habitats as reservoirs of Festuca pratensis Huds. and Lolium multiflorum Lam. populations for breeding and conservation

2008

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European natural and semi-natural grassland form reservoirs of genetic resources containing highly adapted and variable ecotype populations of forage plants. Variation within these reservoirs is stimulated by variation in natural and anthropogenic site-related factors. Changes in agricultural practices lead to the loss of many characteristic habitats. In order to preserve resources for breeding, targeted conservation strategies for germplasm in gene banks (ex-situ) or on site (in-situ) are needed. In order to define site-related criteria for the potential of habitats to preserve valuable resources for breeding and conservation, 38 different habitats across Switzerland were selected to collect Festuca pratensis Huds. and Lolium multiflorum Lam. ecotype populations. Phenotypic variation and population differentiation of 60 single plants were evaluated in a field experiment using 16 morpho-physiological traits. For F. pratensis, ecotype populations and cultivars were clearly separated and there was a significant correlation between diversity of morphological traits and geographic location of sampling sites. For L. multiflorum no clear separation of ecotype populations and cultivars was observed suggesting gene flow from adjacent temporary leys into permanent grassland. Several ecotype populations were superior to cultivars in important traits such as early heading or resistance to winter damage, indicating the importance of natural habitats as a reservoir of genetic resources for breeding. In conclusion, maintenance of permanent grassland in contrasting environments appears to be a promising strategy for preserving valuable genetic variation of forage grasses.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Value of permanent grassland habitats as reservoirs of Festuca pratensis Huds. and Lolium multiflorum Lam. populations for breeding and conservation

2008

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“…1998). It has been suggested that the lack of population differentiation is resulting from human‐mediated gene flow via the widespread use of improved varieties (Warren et al . 1998).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Genetic diversity in perennial ryegrass and white clover among old Dutch grasslands as compared to cultivars and nature reserves

et al. 2004

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To support conservation policies for old Dutch grasslands that are still in agricultural use, morphological variation and AFLP-based (amplified fragment length polymorphism-based) genetic diversity was studied in perennial ryegrass and white clover populations and compared with the diversity in reference varieties. In addition, AFLP variation was also studied in grasslands located in nature reserves. From principal component analysis (PCA), it appeared that date of ear emergence in perennial ryegrass and characters related to plant vigour in white clover were the main morphological characters separating the reference varieties from the old Dutch grassland populations, and some of the grassland populations from each other. In both species, intrapopulation variation was lower for the reference varieties. Lower heterogeneity within the reference varieties was also found in the AFLP analysis. All common AFLP's observed in old Dutch grasslands could also be found in the reference varieties and nature reserves. Only a small number of low-frequency alleles found in old Dutch grasslands were absent from the other two groups. However, band frequencies of markers could vary considerably between populations, which may have been caused by selection. Analysis of the AFLP data by PCA distinguished the majority of reference varieties from the old Dutch grasslands, and showed genetic differentiation only between some grasslands. Comparison of old Dutch grasslands with grasslands in nature reserves indicated that basically the same range of genetic variation is covered by the two groups. Our study indicates that the Netherlands harbour a more or less continuous population for major parts of the diversity of perennial ryegrass and white clover. It was concluded that no specific conservation measures are presently needed to maintain genetic diversity of perennial ryegrass and white clover occurring in old Dutch grasslands.

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“…Further studies should evaluate (e.g. by genetic structure analysis, [5], [6]) if populations of purely wild plants whose cultivars have been used in re-vegetation since several decades are still available, as there is a real threat that they are not [39].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For instance, in parts of northern Spain (Galicia) cultivars of Dactylis glomerata , which were introduced for hay production in the 1970’s, and developed hybrids with their wilds seemed to displace the wild populations [4]. Similar trends have been assumed for Lolium perenne in Britain [5] and L. multiflorum in Switzerland [6] as cultivars of these species have been introduced for several decades to improve grasslands. This kind of displacements of wild plant populations is known as cryptic invasion because cultivars, wilds and their hybrids are often difficult to distinguish from another and the invasion is therefore not immediately detected [7], [8].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Do Cultivated Varieties of Native Plants Have the Ability to Outperform Their Wild Relatives?

Schröder

Prasse

2013

PLoS ONE

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Vast amounts of cultivars of native plants are annually introduced into the semi-natural range of their wild relatives for re-vegetation and restoration. As cultivars are often selected towards enhanced biomass production and might transfer these traits into wild relatives by hybridization, it is suggested that cultivars and the wild × cultivar hybrids are competitively superior to their wild relatives. The release of such varieties may therefore result in unintended changes in native vegetation. In this study we examined for two species frequently used in re-vegetation (Plantago lanceolata and Lotus corniculatus) whether cultivars and artificially generated intra-specific wild × cultivar hybrids may produce a higher vegetative and generative biomass than their wilds. For that purpose a competition experiment was conducted for two growing seasons in a common garden. Every plant type was growing (a.) alone, (b.) in pairwise combination with a similar plant type and (c.) in pairwise interaction with a different plant type. When competing with wilds cultivars of both species showed larger biomass production than their wilds in the first year only and hybrids showed larger biomass production than their wild relatives in both study years. As biomass production is an important factor determining fitness and competitive ability, we conclude that cultivars and hybrids are competitively superior their wild relatives. However, cultivars of both species experienced large fitness reductions (nearly complete mortality in L. corniculatus) due to local climatic conditions. We conclude that cultivars are good competitors only as long as they are not subjected to stressful environmental factors. As hybrids seemed to inherit both the ability to cope with the local climatic conditions from their wild parents as well as the enhanced competitive strength from their cultivars, we regard them as strong competitors and assume that they are able to outperform their wilds at least over the short-term.

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Genetic structure in the perennial grasses Lolium perenne and Agrostis curtisii

Cited by 21 publications

References 22 publications

Value of permanent grassland habitats as reservoirs of Festuca pratensis Huds. and Lolium multiflorum Lam. populations for breeding and conservation

Value of permanent grassland habitats as reservoirs of Festuca pratensis Huds. and Lolium multiflorum Lam. populations for breeding and conservation

Genetic diversity in perennial ryegrass and white clover among old Dutch grasslands as compared to cultivars and nature reserves

Do Cultivated Varieties of Native Plants Have the Ability to Outperform Their Wild Relatives?

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