ARS | Publication request: Using DNA fingerprinting to identify mislabled plants in the trade: An example from Hydrangea

Submitted to: Southern Nursery Association Proceedings
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: August 8, 2006
Publication Date: April 5, 2007
Citation: Rinehart, T.A., Reed, S.M. 2007. Using DNA fingerprinting to identify mislabled plants in the trade: An example from Hydrangea. Southern Nursery Association Proceedings Vol, 51 pp 580-583.

Interpretive Summary: ‘True-to-name’ guarantees are often given for wholesale and retail nursery purchases. Other than visual inspection, relatively few methods are available to verify correct labeling. As biotechnology has become more affordable, genetic markers are an efficient way to compare plants from multiple sources. Since hydrangeas are vegetatively propagated, DNA fingerprints of named cultivars should be identical for same named plants. The objectives of this study is to create DNA fingerprints for hydrangea using simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers and then compare fingerprints between named cultivars from multiple sources.

Technical Abstract: Mislabeling of nursery stock can be difficult to detect. Differences in botanical descriptions are often subtle and may involve mature traits that are only visible after the plant is sold. On the other hand, DNA fingerprints are accessible and consistent at all stages of development and through successive rounds of vegetative propagation. This work demonstrates the utility of simple sequence repeats (SSR) markers to compare hydrangea cultivars from multiple sources.