Strong, independent, quantitative genetic control of the timing of vegetative phase change and first flowering in Eucalyptus globulus ssp. globulus (Tasmanian Blue Gum)

doi:doi:10.1046/j.1365-2540.1999.00570.x

Heredity (1999) 83, 179–187; doi:10.1046/j.1365-2540.1999.00570.x

Strong, independent, quantitative genetic control of the timing of vegetative phase change and first flowering in Eucalyptus globulus ssp. globulus (Tasmanian Blue Gum)

Gregory J Jordan¹, Bradley M Potts¹ and Robert J E Wiltshire¹

¹Cooperative Research Centre for Sustainable Production Forestry and School of Plant Science, University of Tasmania, GPO Box 252-55, Hobart 7001, Australia

Correspondence: Gregory J Jordan, E-mail: greg.jordan@utas.edu.au

Received 18 January 1999; Accepted 26 April 1999.

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Abstract

Analyses of large open-pollinated and controlled-cross field trials of Eucalyptus globulus ssp. globulus show quantitative genetic independence of the times of first flowering and the abrupt change in leaf form. The onset of each of these critical developmental events is under moderate to strong additive genetic control in this taxon, with individual narrow-sense heritabilities of 0.4–0.6 and 0.2–0.9, respectively, and little nonadditive genetic control. This strong additive genetic control and the independence of these processes provide the genetic environment for rapid heterochronic microevolution.