Location: Floral and Nursery Plants Research
2018 Annual Report
Objectives
Objective 1: Efficiently and effectively acquire priority temperate-adapted woody landscape plant genetic resources; maintain their safety, genetic integrity, health and viability; and distribute them and associated information worldwide. [NP301, C2, PS2A; C1, PS1B]
Sub-objective 1.a. Acquire samples and associated information of select taxa via exploration, contract collecting, and exchange. Targeted taxa include: Cladrastis kentukea, Viburnum species, Quercus species, Acer saccharum subsp. leucoderme and floridanum, Lindera benzoin, and Hamamelis ovalis.
Sub-objective 1.b. Maintain and backup plant germplasm, including conduct germination tests on stored seed to determine viability of older germplasm; update seed collection and GRIN-Global database to reflect inventory; prioritize and regenerate or re-collect vulnerable accessions.
Sub-objective 1.c. Distribute accessions and information that meet the specific needs of researchers, breeders, conservationists, nursery professionals, and other stakeholders.
Objective 2: Develop more effective genetic resource maintenance, evaluation, and characterization methods and apply them to priority temperate-adapted woody landscape plant genetic resources. Record and disseminate evaluation and characterization data via GRIN-Global and other data sources. [NP301, C2, PS2A]
Sub-objective 2.a. Develop and apply molecular markers for analysis of genetic diversity, taxonomic identity, and/or population structure for Tsuga chinensis and other priority taxa.
Sub-objective 2.b. In collaboration with nurseries, botanic gardens, and university cooperators, evaluate horticultural merit of accessions collected under sub-objective 1.a and those already included in our living collections; disseminate information and superior germplasm or selections.
Objective 3: With other NPGS genebanks, Crop Germplasm Committees, and customers/stakeholders, develop, update, document, and implement best management practices and a Crop Vulnerability Statement for temperate-adapted woody landscape plant genetic resource and information management. [NP301, C2, PS2A]
Approach
High-quality germplasm identified from in situ populations or ex situ collections will be acquired in the most efficient manner. For many acquisitions, this will be through germplasm requests, exchanges, and local collecting. Domestic collections for the eight taxa identified as priorities (Cladrastis kentukea, Viburnum, Quercus, Hamamilis ovalis, Lindera benzoin, Fagus grandifolia, Sassafras albidum, and Acer saccharum subsp. leucoderme and floridanum) will focus primarily on eastern North America. Our approach will be to collaborate with local experts including other scientists, botanists, and collectors. The number of species targeted and collection goals in each specific effort will depend in part on the extent of the collaborators’ involvement and ease of access to sites.
We will use a contracted service for seed viability testing. Seed that is more than ten years old will be prioritized for viability testing based on the quality of passport data, its conservation status, and the number of requests received for that taxon. Seed that has no viability will be deaccessioned or inactivated following the NPGS Inactivation Guidelines developed by the PGOC. Seed will also be regenerated in-house or recollected. Seed from regenerated or collected accessions will be sent to the NCGRP in Ft. Collins for long-term backup.
We will follow our established protocols for meeting distribution requests that come through GRIN-Global for accessions already in the system. We will also distribute seeds of newly acquired taxa to collaborators for conservation or evaluation. Basic passport data (taxonomic information, collection locations, dates) are maintained in GRIN-Global for each accession. We will supplement these data with evaluation and descriptive information and images from collaborative evaluation projects which will add value to the germplasm.
To evaluate germplasm, we will use SSR markers to determine relationships among and diversity within accessions of Tsuga chinensis and Lindera benzoin. We will also evaluate the horticultural merit of germplasm accessions through collaborative agreements with several cooperators. Plants will be evaluated for various horticultural and production traits. Data will be collected after three years of field trials, and for two to five years subsequently, depending on the genus.
In order to update and implement best management practices and a Crop Vulnerability Statement for germplasm, we will maintain and establish collaborations with WLPGR users and other stakeholders to ensure that the collections are relevant, well-curated, accessible, and effectively utilized. We will work with the Crop Germplasm Committee to develop a list of targeted genera or species which are most vulnerable or otherwise in need of conservation. We will also update our internal “Operations Manual”, which provides specific guidance on identification, collection, maintenance, distribution, and evaluation of germplasm specific to the WLPGR, and also addresses database management, invasiveness, staffing, equipment and facilities, the WLPCGC, and safeguarding germplasm.
Progress Report
This new project began on 3/6/2018 and represents a continuation of Project 8020-21000-147-00D. Progress towards milestones and objectives for early FY18 is documented in the report for the terminating project. Please see the report for 8020-21000-147-00D for detailed information.
In this project, under Objective 1, we conducted a scouting trip to look for Cladrastis kentukea in the Southern Appalachian Mountains. The objective was to determine the location, health, population sizes, and degree of flowering within in each site. Flowering of Cladrastis was poor this year, so we expect poor seed set in the fall. We have also identified populations of Cladrastis in eastern and central Tennessee, Alabama, and Kentucky, and have engaged a local botanist to collect populations in Kentucky. We continued to collaborate with the ARS PI station in Ames, Iowa to collect Cladrastis from across its range. We continued our collaboration with the American Public Garden Association (APGA) and began discussions with the University of Florida to conserve Sassafras and Lindera in response to the spread of the fungal pathogen that causes laurel wilt. The goal is to collect and conserve germplasm from the broad distribution range of these species through a collaborative network. We received five accessions of two targeted Viburnum species from the Mid Atlantic Regional Seed Bank, and are planning a trip to Pennsylvania in fall 2018 to collect seven Viburnum species. To determine viability of older seed stored at the WLPGR, we prioritized accessions based on age and provenance, and sent 418 accessions to the U.S. Forest Service Seed Lab for viability testing. Results will be available by the end of FY18 and will be used to guide future collecting needs. We distributed 449 accessions to 92 requestors including 3 international research institutes, 19 public gardens, 23 commercial organizations, 21 colleges and Universities and 18 private individuals.
Under Objective 2, leaf samples of Tsuga chinensis were obtained from all known documented collections in the U.S. and were used to determine molecular genetic diversity of this species in the U.S. Additionally, 35 accessions from the U.S. National Arboretum were propagated for eventual distribution to cooperators in the deeper southeast to determine heat tolerance of this species.
Under Objective 3, our 23-year collaboration with the American Public Gardens Association remains strong and productive, with 129 existing national collections. The USNA hosted the Plant Germplasm Operations Committee in June 2018 and arranged for APGA leadership to speak at the meeting to broaden collaboration with other ARS Germplasm curators. In addition, the USNA hosted the Woody Landscape Plant Crop Germplasm Committee meeting in July 2018, where members made substantial progress towards an updated Crop Vulnerability Statement for Woody Landscape Plants. We have also completed a revision of the WLPGR Operations Manual, which is currently undergoing internal review.
Accomplishments
