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Australian Journal of Botany Australian Journal of Botany Society
Southern hemisphere botanical ecosystems
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Geographic variation in seedling morphology of Casuarina equisetifolia subsp. equisetifolia (Casuarinaceae)

Pan Hu A , Chonglu Zhong A C , Yong Zhang A , Qingbin Jiang A , Yu Chen A , Zhen Chen A , Khongsak Pinyopusarerk B and David Bush B
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Research Institute of Tropical Forestry, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Guangzhou, 510520, China.

B CSIRO Australian Tree Seed Centre, Black Mountain Laboratories, GPO Box 1600, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia.

C Corresponding author. Email: zclritf@126.com

Australian Journal of Botany 64(2) 160-170 https://doi.org/10.1071/BT15049
Submitted: 25 February 2015  Accepted: 25 February 2016   Published: 1 April 2016

Abstract

Seeds collected from 28 natural provenances and introduced populations of Casuarina equisetifolia subsp. equisetifolia L. from Oceania, Asia and Africa were used to study geographic variation in growth and morphology of nursery-grown seedlings. Ten characteristics related to growth and branching habit were measured for each seedling and the resultant data subjected to univariate and multivariate analyses. In general, seedlings from Oceania grew more slowly, were more densely branched with fine and upright branching, and had fewer teeth per whorl than those from other areas. Cluster analysis effectively separated Oceania from Asian natural provenances, and revealed the probable original sources of introductions to different parts of Asia and Africa. Further investigation into the pattern of variation through molecular characterisation of genetic material from all major regions of distribution is warranted in order to better understand the genetic relationships and enhance more efficient utilisation of this important casuarina species.

Additional keywords: geographic variation, multivariate analysis, seedling morphology.


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