Canadian Forest Service Publications
Genetic variation in juvenile growth and phenology in a white spruce provenance - progeny test. 1993. Li, P.; Beaulieu, J.; Corriveau, A.; Bousquet, J. Silvae Genetica 42: 52-60.
Year: 1993
Issued by: Laurentian Forestry Centre
Catalog ID: 16507
Language: English
Availability: PDF (request by e-mail)
Abstract
We investigated the distribution of genetic variation among and within provenances, the extent of genetic control in growth and bud phenology traits and potential of early testing of height growth for 285 open-pollinated families from 57 provenances of white spruce (Picea glauca) from Quebec and Ontario. Provenances and families within provenances showed significant genetic variation in seedling growth, 1-year branch number, 3-year budget and 8-year height, but not in 3-year budburst. On average, provenance variance was as large as family-within-provenance variance. Individual heritabilities for all traits were generally low (range 0.08 to 0.19) and family heritabilities were higher (range 0.17 to 0.45). In 3-year-old seedlings, height growth was positively correlated with budget, indicating that selection for greater 3-year height would delay budget. Nonsignificant family-within-provenance-by-site interaction variance and high genetic correlations in 8-year height among test sites suggest that families were stable across environments. If the best 20% of families were selected and mated in a seed orchard, predicted genetic gain for 8-year height would be 8%. Strong genetic correlations between 8-year height and seedling heights indicate that 8-year height could be predicted reliably from seedling heights.
