Advances in pollination techniques for large-scale seed production in Eucalyptus globulus
Briony Patterson A B , Peter Gore A C , Brad M. Potts A and René E. Vaillancourt A DA School of Plant Science and Cooperative Research Centre for Sustainable Production Forestry, University of Tasmania, Private Bag 55, Hobart, Tas. 7001, Australia.
B Present address: Menzies Research Institute, University of Tasmania, Private Bag 23, Hobart, Tas. 7001, Australia.
C SeedEnergy Pty Ltd, PO Box 3321 Mount Gambier, SA 5290, Australia.
D Corresponding author. Email: R.Vaillancourt@utas.edu.au
Australian Journal of Botany 52(6) 781-788 https://doi.org/10.1071/BT04044
Submitted: 22 March 2004 Accepted: 25 August 2004 Published: 24 December 2004
Abstract
The effectiveness of supplementary pollination techniques for large-scale production of elite Eucalyptus globulus seed was tested by using pollen fixed for a rare allozyme. We assayed the paternity of 1954 seedlings derived from 1089 flowers on 14 trees with no emasculation or style isolation. We first compared the success of pollinating the transversely cut style surface with direct stigma pollination. For flowers pollinated up to 6 days after operculum shed, style cutting resulted in a 15-fold increase in the number of seed with the marker allozyme (intended pollination) compared with stigma pollination. There was no difference between either pollination treatment and open pollination in 7–14-day-old flowers. We subsequently pollinated 13 trees using the cut-style technique that resulted in 86.9% of progeny having the marker allozyme. Microsatellite analysis showed that only 4.8% of the progeny were selfs. Thus, we show that it is possible to obtain seed with low level of contamination and little selfing, without the costly steps of flower emasculation, isolation and labelling, by simply cutting the style just before pollination and pollinating all suitable flowers on a tree on a weekly cycle. By this approach, elite full-sib families can be generated for deployment into plantations to exploit both additive and non-additive genetic effects.
Acknowledgments
We thank David Pilbeam for pollen and seed collection, Gay McKinnon for the drawings, Marian McGowen for the self-incompatibility data, Rod Griffin and Jane Harbard for comments on the manuscript as well as the ARC for funding a SPIRT grant together with the STBA, Gunns Ltd, Silvagene Pty Ltd and WAPRES.
Assis T,
Warburton P, Harwood C
(2005) Artificially induced protogyny: and advance in the controlled pollination of Eucalyptus. Australian Forestry (in press). ,
Brondani RPV,
Brondani C,
Tarchini R, Grattapaglia D
(1998) Development, characterization and mapping of microsatellite markers in Eucalyptus grandis and E. urophylla. Theoretical and Applied Genetics 97, 816–827.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Costa e Silva J,
Borralho NMG, Potts BM
(2004) Additive and non-additive genetic parameters from clonally replicated and seedling progenies of Eucalyptus globulus. Theoretical and Applied Genetics 108, 1113–1119.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | PubMed |
Doyle JJ, Doyle JL
(1990) Isolation of plant DNA from fresh tissue. Focus 12, 13–15.
Eldridge, K ,
Davidson, J ,
Harwood, C ,
and
Van Wyk, G (1993).
Gore, PL ,
and
Potts, BM (1995). The genetic control of flowering time in Eucalyptus globulus, E. nitens and their F1 hybrid. In ‘Eucalypt plantations: improving fibre yield and quality’. Proceedings of CRCTHF–IUFRO conference pp. 241–242. (CRC for Temperate Hardwood Forestry: Hobart)
Gore PL,
Potts BM,
Volker PW, Megalos J
(1990) Unilateral cross-incompatibility in Eucalyptus: the case of hybridisation between E. globulus and E. nitens. Australian Journal of Botany 38, 383–394.
Griffin, AR (2001). Deployment decisions—capturing the benefits of tree improvement with clones and seedlings. In ‘Proceedings of IUFRO international symposium: developing the eucalypt of the future’. 10–15 September 2001, Valdivia, Chile. Compiled by S Barros. pp. 16. (Instituto Forestal: Valdivia, Chile)
Harbard JL,
Griffin AR, Espejo J
(1999) Mass controlled pollination of Eucalyptus globulus: a practical reality. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 29, 1457–1463.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Harbard, JL ,
Griffin, R ,
Espejo, JE ,
Centurion, C ,
and
Russell, J (2000). ‘One stop pollination’ a new technology developed by Shell Forestry technology unit. In ‘Proceedings of QFRI/CRC–SPF symposium: hybrid breeding and genetics of forest trees’. pp. 430–434. (Department of Primary Industries: Brisbane)
Hardner CM, Potts BM
(1995) Inbreeding depression and changes in variation after selfing Eucalyptus globulus subsp. globulus. Silvae Genetica 44, 46–54.
Hardner CM,
Potts BM, Gore PL
(1998) The relationship between cross success and spatial proximity of Eucalyptus globulus ssp. globulus parents. Evolution 52, 614–618.
Hodge GR,
Volker PW,
Potts BM, Owen JV
(1996) A comparison of genetic information from open-pollinated and control-pollinated progeny tests in two eucalypt species. Theoretical and Applied Genetics 92, 53–63.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Jones RC,
Steane DA,
Potts BM, Vaillancourt RE
(2002) Microsatellite and morphological analysis of Eucalyptus globulus populations. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 32, 59–66.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Leal, AMC ,
and
Cotterill, PP (1997). Mass control-pollination of Eucalyptus globulus. In ‘Proceedings of IUFRO conference on silviculture and improvement of eucalypts’. pp. 256–258. (EMBRAPA: Colombo, Brasil)
Lopez GA,
Potts BM,
Vaillancourt RE, Apiolaza LA
(2003) Maternal and carry-over effects on early growth of Eucalyptus globulus. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 33, 2108–2115.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Moncur MW
(1995) Techniques for pollinating eucalypts. ACIAR Technical Reports 34. Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research, Canberra.
Pound LM,
Wallwork MAB,
Potts BM, Sedgley M
(2002a) Early ovule development following self- and cross-pollinations in Eucalyptus globulus Labill. ssp. globulus. Annals of Botany 89, 613–620.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | PubMed |
Pound LM,
Wallwork MAB,
Potts BM, Sedgley M
(2002b) Self-incompatibility in Eucalyptus globulus ssp. globulus (Myrtaceae). Australian Journal of Botany 50, 365–372.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Pound LM,
Patterson B,
Wallwork MAB,
Potts BM, Sedgley M
(2003) Pollen competition does not affect the success of self-pollination in Eucalyptus globulus (Myrtaceae). Australian Journal of Botany 51, 189–195.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Patterson B,
Vaillancourt RE,
Wallwork MAB,
Potts BM, Sedgley M
(2004) Factors affecting variation in outcrossing rate in Eucalyptus globulus. Australian Journal of Botany 52, 773–780.
Ramírez de Arellano, P ,
Zapata, J ,
Contardo, C ,
Rojas, P ,
Ballochi, C ,
and
Ordoñez, J (2001). Optimización de metodología para la producción operacional de semilla de cruzamientos controlados de Eucalyptus globulus. In ‘Proceedings of IUFRO international symposium: developing the eucalypt of the future’. 10–15 September 2001, Valdivia, Chile. Compiled by S Barros. pp. 17. (Instituto Forestal: Chile)
Rojas, P ,
Ramirez de Arellano, P ,
Contardo, C ,
Balocchi, C ,
and
Potts, BM (2001). Desarrollo de una metodología para la producción de semilla híbrida intra e interespecífica en un huerto semillero clonal de Eucalyptus globulus. In ‘Proceedings of IUFRO international symposium: developing the eucalypt of the future’. 10–15 September 2001, Valdivia, Chile. Compiled by S Barros. pp. 15. (Instituto Forestal: Chile)
Russell, J ,
Marshall, D ,
Griffin, R ,
Harbard, J ,
and
Powell, W (2001). Gene flow in South American Eucalyptus grandis and Eucalyptus globulus seed orchards. In ‘Proceedings of IUFRO international symposium: developing the eucalypt of the future’. 10–15 September 2001, Valdivia, Chile. Compiled by S Barros. pp. 5. (Instituto Forestal: Chile)
Steane DA,
Vaillancourt RE,
Russell J,
Powell W,
Marshall D, Potts BM
(2001) Development and characterisation of microsatellite loci in Eucalyptus globulus (Myrtaceae). Silvae Genetica 50, 89–91.
Tibbits WN
(1986) Frost resistance in Eucalyptus nitens. PhD Thesis
(University of Tasmania:
Hobart, Australia)
Tibbits, WN ,
Boomsma, DB ,
and
Jarvis, S (1997). Distribution, biology, genetics and improvement programs for Eucalyptus globulus and E. nitens around the world. In ‘Proceedings of the 24th biennial southern tree improvement conference, 9–12 June 1997, Florida’. pp. 1–15. (Southern Tree Improvement Committee: Orlando, FL)
Trindade H,
Boavida LC,
Borralho N, Feijo JA
(2001) Successful fertilization and seed set from pollination on immature non-dehisced flowers of Eucalyptus globulus. Annals of Botany 87, 469–475.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Vaillancourt RE,
Potts BM,
Watson M,
Volker PW,
Hodges G,
Reid JB, West A
(1995) Detection and prediction of heterosis in Eucalyptus globulus. Forest Genetics 2, 11–19.
Volker P
(2002) Quantitative genetics of Eucalyptus globulus, E. nitens and their F1 hybrid. PhD Thesis
(University of Tasmania:
Hobart, Australia)
Williams DR,
Potts BM, Black PG
(1999) A single visit pollination method for Eucalyptus globulus. Australian Forestry 62, 346–352.
