Poa secunda local collections and commercial releases: A genotypic evaluation

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 12; no. 4; p. e0173221
• Main Authors: Shaw, Alanna N, Mummey, Daniel L
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 03.04.2017; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Adaptation, Physiological - genetics; Agriculture; Amplified fragment length polymorphism; Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism Analysis; Apomixis; Bioinformatics; Biology and Life Sciences; Collection; Collections; Conservation of Natural Resources; Crop science; Deoxyribonucleic acid; DNA; DNA, Plant - genetics; DNA, Plant - isolation & purification; Earth Sciences; Ecological effects; Ecological restoration; Ecology; Ecology and Environmental Sciences; Ecosystem; Genetic distance; Genetic diversity; Genetic variability; Genetic Variation; Genetics; Genotype; Germplasm; Grasslands; High plains; Indigenous plants; Mitochondrial DNA; Montana; Physical Sciences; Poa - genetics; Poa - physiology; Population; Research and Analysis Methods; Restoration; Seed collection; Seeds; Seeds - genetics; Species; Taxa; United States > US; Montana
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0173221

The genetics of native plants influence the success of ecological restoration, yet genetic variability of local seed collections and commercial seed releases remains unclear for most taxa. Poa secunda, a common native grass species in Intermountain West grasslands and a frequent component of restoration seed mixes, is one such species. Here, we evaluate the genetic variation of local Poa secunda collections in the context of wild populations and commercial seed releases. We evaluated AFLP markers for seven Poa secunda collections made over a 4000-hectare area and four commercial releases (High Plains, MT-1, Opportunity, and Sherman). We compare the genetic distance and distribution of genetic variation within and between local collections and commercial releases. The extent and patterns of genetic variation in our local collections indicate subtle site differences with most variation occurring within rather than between collections. Identical genetic matches were usually, but not always, found within 5 m2 collection sites. Our results suggest that the genetic variation in two Poa secunda releases (High Plains and MT-1) is similar to our local collections. Our results affirm that guidelines for Poa secunda seed collection should follow recommendations for selfing species, by collecting from many sites over large individual sites.