Azaleas (Ericaceae) comprise one of the most diverse ornamental plants, renowned for their cultural and economic importance. We present a chromosome-scale genome assembly for Rhododendron simsii, the primary ancestor of azalea cultivars. Genome analyses unveil the remnants of an ancient whole-genome duplication preceding the radiation of most Ericaceae, likely contributing to the genomic architecture of flowering time. Small-scale gene duplications contribute to the expansion of gene families involved in azalea pigment biosynthesis. We reconstruct entire metabolic pathways for anthocyanins and carotenoids and their potential regulatory networks by detailed analysis of time-ordered gene co-expression networks. MYB, bHLH, and WD40 transcription factors may collectively regulate anthocyanin accumulation in R. simsii, particularly at the initial stages of flower coloration, and with WRKY transcription factors controlling progressive flower coloring at later stages. This work provides a cornerstone for understanding the underlying genetics governing flower timing and coloration and could accelerate selective breeding in azalea.

Summary: Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) has an ancient cultivation history and has become an emerging profitable fruit crop due to its attractive features such as the bright red appearance and the high abundance of medicinally valuable ellagitannin‐based compounds in its peel and aril. However, the limited genomic resources have restricted further elucidation of genetics and evolution of these interesting traits. Here, we report a 274‐Mb high‐quality draft pomegranate genome sequence, which covers approximately 81.5% of the estimated 336‐Mb genome, consists of 2177 scaffolds with an N50 size of 1.7 Mb and contains 30 903 genes. Phylogenomic analysis supported that pomegranate belongs to the Lythraceae family rather than the monogeneric Punicaceae family, and comparative analyses showed that pomegranate and Eucalyptus grandis share the paleotetraploidy event. Integrated genomic and transcriptomic analyses provided insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the biosynthesis of ellagitannin‐based compounds, the colour formation in both peels and arils during pomegranate fruit development, and the unique ovule development processes that are characteristic of pomegranate. This genome sequence provides an important resource to expand our understanding of some unique biological processes and to facilitate both comparative biology studies and crop breeding.

Summary: An innovative approach to tree breeding called ‘breeding without breeding’ (BWB) is presented. The method, as applied on the material in hand, allows the capture of 75–85% of the genetic response to selection attained through conventional programmes without the need to do any controlled pollination and simplified or possibly no experimental field testing: both considered to be the most resource-demanding activities in breeding programmes. BWB combines the use of genotypic or phenotypic pre-selection of superior individuals, informative DNA markers for fingerprinting and pedigree reconstruction of offspring to assemble naturally created full- and half-sib families resulting from mating among selected parents, and quantitative genetics analyses to identify elite genotypes for further genetic improvement or the establishment of production populations. BWB utility is demonstrated using a retrospective study of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) progeny tests consisting of offspring produced from 150 controlled crosses among 60 parents and established over three sites. The empirical results are supported by theoretical expectations demonstrating anticipated minimum genetic response compared with conventional approaches. The method's simplicity offers an exceptional opportunity for the development of comparable breeding efforts in developing countries, advanced and new breeding programmes, and economically important and ‘minor’ species.

Slope aspect plays a critical role in influencing vegetation pattern in semiarid area. The dry valleys of the Hengduan Mountains Region, southwestern China, are striking geographical landscape, suffering from severe ecological degradation. Here, we comprehensively investigated how slope aspect affects vegetation attributes in one of these valleys- the dry valley in the upper reaches of Min River. Three sites were selected along the valley and we quantitively examined the vegetation difference between slope aspects at the whole valley scale and each site level. We found significant vegetation differences between slope aspects in species composition, vegetative structure, and biodiversity pattern, which were in accordance with the observed significant difference in soil nutrient. Generally, north-facing slopes are associated with higher biomass, coverage and height, and species diversity than south-facing slopes. We also found between-aspect differences varied among the study sites, resulting in increased biomass, height, and β diversity differences, decreased density and coverage differences, and opposite trend observed in α diversity at relatively wet site. In conclusion, slope aspect had significant effect on vegetation attributes, which was significantly influenced by local climate (aridity) in terms of both strength and direction depending on the specific attributes investigated.

Molecular markers have proven to be invaluable tools for assessing plants’ genetic resources by improving our understanding with regards to the distribution and the extent of genetic variation within and among species. Recently developed marker technologies allow the uncovering of the extent of the genetic variation in an unprecedented way through increased coverage of the genome. Markers have diverse applications in plant sciences, but certain marker types, due to their inherent characteristics, have also shown their limitations. A combination of diverse marker types is usually recommended to provide an accurate assessment of the extent of intra- and inter-population genetic diversity of naturally distributed plant species on which proper conservation directives for species that are at risk of decline can be issued. Here, specifically, natural populations of forest trees are reviewed by summarizing published reports in terms of the status of genetic variation in the pure species. In general, for outbred forest tree species, the genetic diversity within populations is larger than among populations of the same species, indicative of a negligible local spatial structure. Additionally, as is the case for plants in general, the diversity at the phenotypic level is also much larger than at the marker level, as selectively neutral markers are commonly used to capture the extent of genetic variation. However, more and more, nucleotide diversity within candidate genes underlying adaptive traits are studied for signatures of selection at single sites. This adaptive genetic diversity constitutes important potential for future forest management and conservation purposes.