Poa secunda local collections and commercial releases: A genotypic evaluation

Abstract

The genetics of native plants influence the success of ecological restoration, yet genetic variability of local seed collections and commercial seed releases remains unclear for most taxa. Poa secunda, a common native grass species in Intermountain West grasslands and a frequent component of restoration seed mixes, is one such species. Here, we evaluate the genetic variation of local Poa secunda collections in the context of wild populations and commercial seed releases. We evaluated AFLP markers for seven Poa secunda collections made over a 4000-hectare area and four commercial releases (High Plains, MT-1, Opportunity, and Sherman). We compare the genetic distance and distribution of genetic variation within and between local collections and commercial releases. The extent and patterns of genetic variation in our local collections indicate subtle site differences with most variation occurring within rather than between collections. Identical genetic matches were usually, but not always, found within 5 m2 collection sites. Our results suggest that the genetic variation in two Poa secunda releases (High Plains and MT-1) is similar to our local collections. Our results affirm that guidelines for Poa secunda seed collection should follow recommendations for selfing species, by collecting from many sites over large individual sites.

Characterization of Adult Functional Traits of Local Populations and Cultivars of Sandberg Bluegrass and Bottlebrush Squirreltail Perennial Bunchgrasses

“…Further, this variation in plant height may indicate the morphological plasticity of these grasses [53,54] depending on environmental conditions at the site of cultivation. Unlike this study, Shaw and Mummey [55] and Johnson et al [40] reported distinct evidence of genetic variations among populations of Sandberg bluegrass across the Intermountain West in the United States. The disparity in this study relative to the study of Johnson et al [40] is that only a small number of sourced populations of Sandberg bluegrass were evaluated.…”

Animals alter precipitation legacies: Trophic and ecosystem engineering effects on plant community temporal dynamics

“…Moreover, GKR foraging benefitted the grass Poa secunda ssp. secunda , a native perennial species that is frequently used in ecological restoration (Shaw & Mummey, ) but is negatively affected by invasive grasses (Herget, Hufford, Mummey, Mealor, & Shreading, ; Herget, Hufford, Mummey, & Shreading, ). The persistence of these species may rely on continued management to conserve GKR populations and their trophic interactions.…”

Populations restored using regional seed are genetically diverse and similar to natural populations in the region

“…Establishing and following international standards could reduce uncertainties around seed sourcing and production procedures (Pedrini & Dixon, 2020). In general, conventionally produced seeds may, or may not have reduced genetic variability, depending on the production procedures (Jordan et al., 2019; Massatti et al., 2018; Shaw & Mummey, 2017), which highlights that conventional and regional seeds are two extremes of a continuum spanning from no standards to high standards. While some producers are well aware of the importance of high genetic diversity (Aavik et al., 2012; Bucharova et al., 2019; Kiehl et al., 2014), restoration using single homogeneous cultivars is still common (Gemeinholzer et al., 2020; Massatti et al., 2018; Slaymaker et al., 2015).…”

“…In general, conventional seeds represent their populations of origin but are differentiated from populations in any distant target region (Gustafson et al., 2018; Massatti et al., 2018; Tong et al., 2020 but see e.g. Braasch et al., 2021; Shaw & Mummey, 2017). Therefore, using such seed sources could contaminate the regional gene pool and possibly reduce plant performance due to lacking regional adaptation (Bucharova et al., 2017).…”