Research Highlights: High variation of genetic diversity and differentiation among 27 seed sources within 14 natural provenances and 13 land race samples of Casuarina equisetifolia were found. High proportions of monoecious individuals may be present in some populations, as indicated by severe heterozytote deficiency and inbreeding found in many provenances and land races. The most probable origins of the land races were inferred according to the values of pairwise provenance differentiation and Nei’s genetic distances. Targeted introductions and testing of unrelated new accessions of C. equisetifolia from the Pacific and Philippines was proposed to identify Ralstonia-resistant genotypes. Background and Objectives: Casuarina equisetifolia was introduced to China a hundred years ago and has become a critically important tree species in coastal protection since the 1950s. Despite its importance, patterns of genetic variation, genetic relationships among natural provenances and probable origins of the land races remain unresolved. This has become a concern in China where Ralstonia solanacearum bacterial wilt has devastated plantations that are known to be from a narrow genetic base that urgently needs to be broadened. Materials and Methods: Fourteen natural provenances from Australia, Pacific islands and Southeast Asia, and 13 land race samples from parts of Asia and Africa outside the natural range were genotyped using 13 SSR (Simple Sequence Repeats) markers to characterize their allelic variation and genetic relationship. Results: Significant genetic diversity and differentiation among 27 seed sources within 14 provenances and 13 land race samples of C. equisetifolia was indicated. Significant heterozygote deficiency and inbreeding was indicated for a number of provenances, perhaps indicating a high proportion of monoecious parents in these populations. The most probable origins of the land races of the introduced countries were suggested according to the values of pairwise provenance differentiation (F_ST) and Nei’s genetic distances. Conclusions: We found significant genetic diversity and genetic differentiation among seed sources of C. equisetifolia. While individual land races do not appear to lack diversity, we were able to infer the origins of some, allowing targeted introductions of unrelated material to be made. In the case of the Chinese land race, targeting and testing new accessions from the Pacific and the Philippines may be a good strategy to identify Ralstonia-resistant genotypes.

The Tabebuia alliance is widely planted in tropical and subtropical countries. However, the lack of accurate taxonomic information for many commercial cultivars leads to commercial disputes. We sought to clarify the background of commercial cultivars in China and to provide a robust basis for patent protection. We collected 82 Tabebuia cultivars and 12 reference individuals, then developed large-scale single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers using genotyping-by-sequencing. We obtained 73,219 SNPs from the test samples, which represented a substantial increase compared with previous studies of Tabebuia species. Based on these SNPs and a clustering analysis, we detected six species among the samples, as well as an uncertain population which may be a hybrid between Handroanthus impetiginosus (Mart. ex DC) Mattos and H. heptaphyllus (Vell.) Mattos. An analysis of genetic diversity to assess germplasm resources indicated that excessive heterozygosity of these cultivars in China, which may explain the genetic basis of “novel-preferred” selection in ornamental plants or a narrow genetic background. After rigorous selection, we identified numerous high-quality molecular markers for cultivar identification, then constructed a concise fingerprint with 54 SNPs. Our work clarifies the background information of commercial cultivars of Tabebuia in China and provides information for cultivar identification. It will serve as an important technical resource for genetic studies, and it will help to protect patents that involve Tabebuia species.

Allocasuarina verticillata (Lam.) L.A.S. Johnson is a widespread species in south-eastern Australia providing vegetation cover, protecting fragile soils and providing food for birds. Understanding the effects of gene flow on the recruitment patterns, genetic differentiation and structure of fragmented populations provides fundamental guidelines to underpin plant conservation strategies and activities. In this study, four spatially disjunct populations of A. verticillata were sampled to explore the effects of population size, reproductive patterns and pollen and seed dispersal on among-population genetic diversity, genetic differentiation and structure, using field survey and microsatellite marker techniques. It was found that stands of A. verticillata were predominantly sexually reproductive, but asexual reproduction through root suckering was an additional mode of reproduction. The reproductive success of A. verticillata is positively correlated with the effective population size rather than actual population size. The reduction in effective population size and increment of spatial isolation resulted in lower genetic diversity and higher inbreeding coefficient of progenies. Moderate pairwise genetic differentiation and weak genetic structure were identified. The results suggest that exogenous, wind-mediated pollen flow provides some maintenance of genetic diversity in the isolated stands. Seed dispersal appears mainly to be over short distances (i.e., within populations), but the infrequent transport of seeds between disjunct locations cannot be ruled out as another factor that may help maintain genetic diversity.