Description
Some 285 Ladino white clover genotypes selected from four ecotypes were multiplied clonally and evaluated in a replicated pot experiment over one year. Multivariate patterns of variation were depicted by principal component analysis performed on the correlation matrix of five morphophysiological traits, namely petiole length, central leaflet size, head production, number of florets per head and stolon density. Selection was based on high broad sense heritability values of all of these traits. The level of intra-population variation was so high relative to inter-population variation that almost all plant types possibe could be found within each ecotype, although at a variable frequency. Genetic distances between populations, computed as unsquared Euclidean distances between mean values of the ecotypes in the space of the significant PC axes, were consistent (r = 0.87, P < 0.03) with those issued from a previous evaluation in dense, sown plots. The implications of the present findings on collection, preservation and selection activities is discussed.
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A Multivariate Assessment of Variation Within and Among Ladino White Clover Ecotypes
Some 285 Ladino white clover genotypes selected from four ecotypes were multiplied clonally and evaluated in a replicated pot experiment over one year. Multivariate patterns of variation were depicted by principal component analysis performed on the correlation matrix of five morphophysiological traits, namely petiole length, central leaflet size, head production, number of florets per head and stolon density. Selection was based on high broad sense heritability values of all of these traits. The level of intra-population variation was so high relative to inter-population variation that almost all plant types possibe could be found within each ecotype, although at a variable frequency. Genetic distances between populations, computed as unsquared Euclidean distances between mean values of the ecotypes in the space of the significant PC axes, were consistent (r = 0.87, P < 0.03) with those issued from a previous evaluation in dense, sown plots. The implications of the present findings on collection, preservation and selection activities is discussed.
