Genetic diversity of Populus alba L in Kinnaur, Himachal Pradesh, India Tiwari Balkrishna1,*, Singh Jagdish2, Sharma Sandeep1, Sharma Yamini1, Sharma Karan2 1Genetics and Tree Improvement Division, ICFRE – Himalayan Forest Research Institute, Panthaghati, Shimla171013Himachal Pradesh, India 2Extension Division, ICFRE – Himalayan Forest Research Institute, Panthaghati, Shimla171013Himachal Pradesh, India *Email for correspondence: tiwarib@icfre.org
Online Published on 25 January, 2024. Abstract Populus alba L is an ecologically and economically important species of Mediterranean origin. It has been introduced in many parts of the world due to long term human interference and is still being cultivated. In Himachal Pradesh, it is mostly found in Kinnaur and its indigenous status is controversial in India. In order to understand the native status and develop strategies for breeding and conservation, the population structure and genetic diversity of P alba in Kinnaur region were analyzed using nuclear and chloroplast microsatellite markers. A very low value of observed (Ho) and expected heterozygosity (He), viz 0.033 and 0.062 respectively, indicated limited genetic variations in the population. During the study period, flowering was not recorded in tagged plants and only vegetative regeneration was observed. Thus it is likely to be an exotic species in Kinnaur, Himachal Pradesh. There is a need to develop strategies for conservation of the existing genetic resources of this species and introduce genetically diverse germplasm for future breeding and improvement programmes. Top Keywords Populus alba, Genetic diversity, Native status, Regeneration. Top |