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Title: GENETIC CONTROL OF COLD HARDINESS IN BLUEBERRY

Author
item ARORA, RAJEEV - WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY
item Rowland, Lisa
item PANTA, GANESH - UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA
item LIM, CHON-CHONG - WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY
item LEHMAN, JEFFREY - RUTGERS UNIVERSITY
item VORSA, NICHOLI - RUTGERS UNIVERSITY

Submitted to: Plant Cold Hardiness Proceedings
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/2/1997
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Very few genetic studies have been conducted on the inheritance of cold hardiness in woody perennials. Results from genetic studies on the mode of cold hardiness, primarily in overwintering cereal crops, suggest that cold hardiness is a complex trait controlled by many genes. More recent work on potato suggests that cold hardiness is controlled by relatively few genes with additive and dominance gene action. In other words, data best fit a simple additive-dominance model for genetic control of cold hardiness in potato. This study was initiated to learn more about the mode of inheritance and determine the action of genes controlling cold hardiness in a woody perennial, blueberry. Using five populations of plants, two parent populations, a hybrid population of the two parental populations, and two testcross populations (hybrid population backcrossed to two parental populations), mean cold hardiness values were determined for cold acclimated plants. These values were used in a generation means analysis to test several models for genetic control of cold hardiness in blueberry. As with potato, the data best fit a simple additive-dominance model.

Technical Abstract: This study was undertaken to screen diploid blueberry (Vaccinium, section Cyanococcus) populations that are expected to segregate for cold hardiness, with the overall goal to identify loci controlling cold hardiness using genetic linkage map-based analysis. Two testcross populations, derived from interspecific hybrids of diploid species V. darrowi x V. caesariense backcrossed to parent species, were used for cold hardiness evaluations and are being used to generate a molecular-marker based genetic linkage map. Plants were cold acclimated by exposing them for four weeks to 4C. Bud cold hardiness (LT50) of acclimated plants was defined as the temperature causing 50% injury when subjected to controlled freeze-thaw regime. Results showed that two parent populations had LT50s of -13.0C (V. darrowi) and -20.0C (V. caesariense). F1 population had a mean LT50 of -14.7C. The V. darrowi and V. caesariense testcross populations had mean LT50s of -18.0C and -14.0C, respectively. Using these mean values, a generation means analysis was performed to test several models for genetic control of cold hardiness. The data best fit a simple additive-dominance model.