Molecular identification of species in Prunus sect. Persica (Rosaceae), with emphasis on evaluation of candidate barcodes for plants

Abstract Species of Prunus L. sect. Persica are not only important fruit trees, but also popular ornamental and medicinal plants. Correct identification of seedlings, barks, or fruit kernels is sometimes required, but no reliable morphological characters are available. Nowadays, the technique of DNA barcoding has the potential to meet such requirements. In this study, we evaluated the suitability of 11 DNA loci (atpB‐rbcL, trnH‐psbA, trnL‐F, trnS‐G, atpF‐H, rbcL, matK, rpoB, rpoC1, nad1, and internal transcribed spacer [ITS]) as candidate DNA barcodes for peaches, using samples from 38 populations, covering all the species in sect. Persica. On the whole, the primers worked well in this group and sequencing difficulties were met only in the case of ITS locus. Five loci (rbcL, matK, rpoB, rpoC, and nad1) have very low variation rates, whereas atpB‐rbcL, atpF‐H, trnH‐psbA, trnL‐F and trnS‐G show more variability. The most variable loci, atpB‐rbcL and trnH‐psbA, can distinguish three of the five species. Two two‐locus combinations, atpB‐rbcL+trnL‐F and atpB‐rbcL+atpF‐H, can resolve all five species. We also find that identification powers of the loci are method‐dependent. The NeighborNet method shows higher species identification power than maximum parsimony, neighbor joining, and unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean methods.     

Exotic tree seedlings are much more competitive than natives but show underyielding when growing together

Aims Invasive species continue to be a worldwide threat to ecosystems mainly as a cause for biodiversity loss. Forest ecosystems, for example, are subject to a change in species composition due to the invasion of exotic species. Specifying the attributes that cause the strong competitiveness of several exotic species may improve the ability to understand and effectively manage plant invasions in the future. In this study the following hypotheses were tested: (1) biomass production of below- and aboveground plant components of the exotic tree species is higher than that of the natives, resulting in a higher competitiveness of the exotics; (2) the exclusion of root competition has a positive effect on the biomass production of the inferior native species; and (3) mixtures of native and exotic species yield a higher biomass production than the respective monocultures.Methods A pot experiment, containing about 2000 tree seedlings, was established. We investigated the biomass productivity and growth reactions of two native (Quercus robur L., Carpinus betulus L.) and two exotic tree species (Prunus serotina Ehrh., Robinia pseudoacacia L.) in different intra- and interspecific, competitive situations with and without the influence of root competition.Important findings The biomass production of both exotic species was significantly higher and led to a strong competitive advantage, resulting in a biomass decrease of the less competitive native species. The high belowground biomass of both exotic species had a negative effect on the biomass production. The competitive pressure of exotic tree seedlings on the native ones was largely driven by root competition. Furthermore, mixtures of native and exotic tree species had a higher productivity than their growth in monocultures would have predicted. Competition was lower for exotic species in mixtures with the less productive native species compared to the competition in monocultures or in mixture with the other highly productive exotic species. Accordingly, both highly competitive exotic species produced less biomass in mixture with each other compared to monocultures. Despite the significantly higher biomass of P. serotina in all mixtures and in monoculture, R. pseudoacacia seemed to be the dominating species. Due to its strong root competition, R. pseudoacacia significantly reduced the biomass production of P. serotina .     

Stamen development and winter dormancy in apricot (Prunus armeniaca)

Background and Aims

In temperate woody perennials, flower bud development is halted during the winter, when the buds enter dormancy. This dormant period is a prerequisite for adequate flowering, is genetically regulated, and plays a clear role in possibly adapting species and cultivars to climatic areas. However, information on the biological events underpinning dormancy is lacking. Stamen development, with clear differentiated stages, appears as a good framework to put dormancy in a developmental context. Here, stamen developmental changes are characterized in apricot (Prunus armeniaca) and are related to dormancy.

Methods

Stamen development was characterized cytochemically from the end of August to March, over 4 years. Developmental changes were related to dormancy, using the existing empirical information on chilling requirements.

Key Results

Stamen development continued during the autumn, and the flower buds entered dormancy with a fully developed sporogenous tissue. Although no anatomical changes were observed during dormancy, breaking of dormancy occurred following a clear sequence of events. Starch accumulated in particular places, pre-empting further development in those areas. Vascular bundles developed and pollen mother cells underwent meiosis followed by microspore development.

Conclusions

Dormancy appears to mark a boundary between the development of the sporogenous tissue and the occurrence of meiosis for further microspore development. Breaking of dormancy occurs following a clear sequence of events, providing a developmental context in which to study winter dormancy and to evaluate differences in chilling requirements among genotypes.     

Invasive host for invasive pest: when the Asiatic cherry fly (Drosophila suzukii) meets the American black cherry (Prunus serotina) in Europe

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Modeling daily flowering probabilities: expected impact of climate change on Japanese cherry phenology

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Characterization of microsatellite markers in peach [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch]

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Sucrose and light effects on in vitro cultures of potato,chokecherry and saskatoon berry during low temperature storage

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