Genetic variation and potential genetic resources of several Romanian larch populations

Abstract

decidua (European larch) has a scattered natural area and is present in four geographic zones (Alps, Sudetan Mountains, Carpathians, and Central Poland), where local European larch have sometimes the status of subspecies or varieties (Biswas and Mohri, 1997). In Romania, the larch has a natural range, being gathered into 5 genetic centers: Ceahlau Mountains (1400-1450 m altitude), Ciucas (1000-1450 m), Bucegi (1200-1500 m), Lotru Mountains (670-1900 m with a maximum range in this area), and Apuseni Mountains (600-1200 m), and in many other plantations more than 200,000 cultivated ha (Mihai and Teodosiu, 2009). The origin of seed is mostly unknown, but probably in the old plantation the seed has Austrian origin.Larch breeding objectives include growth, stem form (crookedness), branching, and resistance to larch canker. There is ongoing research for traits such as heartwood formation and quality (Plomion et al., 2001). Larch heartwood is appreciated for its good mechanical properties, its color, and its texture, and it is often used outdoors for its natural durability (Gierlinger et al., 2004).

Genetic Relationships and Reproductive Traits of Romanian Populations of Silver Fir (Abies alba): Implications for the Sustainable Management of Local Populations

“…For example, despite their relative geographical proximity, the five populations from the northwestern part of Romania did not display closer genetic distances between them than with those farther away. A similar phenomenon was reported in Romanian populations of Larix decidua [59,60]. Cluster analysis confirmed that the genetic relationships between populations were only marginally associated with geographical distances.…”

Genetic Characterisation and Core Collection Construction of European Larch (Larix decidua Mill.) from Seed Orchards in Romania

“…It should be mentioned that only three (Latorit , a, Bucegi, and Apuseni) out of the five naturally occurring areas of larch in Romania are found in breeding populations. On the other hand, we still lack information about the level of diversity of the source populations of plus trees, with the exception of the Baciu seed orchard (northwestern part of Romania) [51].…”

“…Although the tests for identifying the offspring of seed orchards are still at the beginning stage [20], genotypic evaluation is useful for correcting inherent errors related to mature seed orchards (e.g., the origin of clones) and for providing alternative support for the interpretation of the performances in phenotypic traits. With the exception of the Baciu seed orchard (from the northwestern region of Romania) [51], we know little about the diversity of the source populations of plus trees. In evaluating the germplasm collections constructed to obtain desirable traits, the final extracted core collection increased the rate of allele preservation, incorporated every allele from the entire collection, and provided candidate resources for the enhanced breeding of larch.…”

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“…Поэтому интерес к представителям данного рода ни в России [1][2][3], ни за ее пределами [4][5][6][7][8][9][10] не ослабевает. Проводятся активные исследования систематики, физиологии, межвидового разнообразия и внутривидового полиморфизма рода Лиственница по широкому спектру признаков и свойств, имеющих хозяйственное, адаптационное и идентификационное значение [1][2][3][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18]. Пигментный состав листового аппарата во многом определяет параметры фотосинтеза и в конечном итоге продуктивность и устойчивость древесных растений [19][20][21][22][23].…”