Articles
ADVANCES IN OXERA BREEDING
Article number
836_11
Pages
85 – 90
Language
English
Abstract
The New Caledonian sub-endemic Oxera genus comprises several species of great ornamental interest.
In 2006, we started to set up a vast interspecific hybridiza¬tion programme in order to create new cultivars with combined ornamental features.
Twenty one of the twenty two endemic taxa (O. neriifolia subsp. sororia was not found during several field searches) were used in this breeding programme and more than 7600 hand pollination crosses were performed.
Pollinations were done with freshly collected pollen prior to bud opening and after immature anthers removal.
Three hundred three fruits containing 566 seeds were harvested and sown giving 361 viable plants.
Limited by available plants and flower buds, 80 combinations out of the 420 theoretically possible ones were trialled.
Seeds were obtained in 37 combinations while 27 combinations gave viable plants.
Only three taxa (O. crassifolia, O. glandulosa and O. morierei) involved in these crosses did not give any offspring. Oxera sulfurea, a species which flowers throughout the year, as the female parent, was involved in 3294 cross pollinations and has generated 284 offspring from 15 of the 20 taxa trialled.
All the putative hybrids produced have intermediate morphological vegetative characters between the two parents and the ones that have already flowered also present inter¬mediate flower forms and colours.
This breeding programme is still ongoing and cytological work is underway to determine the basic number of chromosomes of the genus Oxera and to investigate whether there are any different ploidy levels between the species.
In 2006, we started to set up a vast interspecific hybridiza¬tion programme in order to create new cultivars with combined ornamental features.
Twenty one of the twenty two endemic taxa (O. neriifolia subsp. sororia was not found during several field searches) were used in this breeding programme and more than 7600 hand pollination crosses were performed.
Pollinations were done with freshly collected pollen prior to bud opening and after immature anthers removal.
Three hundred three fruits containing 566 seeds were harvested and sown giving 361 viable plants.
Limited by available plants and flower buds, 80 combinations out of the 420 theoretically possible ones were trialled.
Seeds were obtained in 37 combinations while 27 combinations gave viable plants.
Only three taxa (O. crassifolia, O. glandulosa and O. morierei) involved in these crosses did not give any offspring. Oxera sulfurea, a species which flowers throughout the year, as the female parent, was involved in 3294 cross pollinations and has generated 284 offspring from 15 of the 20 taxa trialled.
All the putative hybrids produced have intermediate morphological vegetative characters between the two parents and the ones that have already flowered also present inter¬mediate flower forms and colours.
This breeding programme is still ongoing and cytological work is underway to determine the basic number of chromosomes of the genus Oxera and to investigate whether there are any different ploidy levels between the species.
Publication
Authors
G. Gâteblé, V. Lemay, J. Ounémoa
Keywords
New Caledonia, interspecific hybridization, new ornamentals, Labiatae
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