Quantitative genetics of Eucalyptus globulus. Eucalypt plantations in Australia have expanded rapidly over the last decade. With increasing market competition from overseas plantations for both pulp and solid wood products, Australia must maintain a competitive edge through efficiencies in production and product quality. Breeding and deployment of genetically superior planting stock is part of the solution. With global climate chance and requirements for re-afforestation in drier zones, there ....Quantitative genetics of Eucalyptus globulus. Eucalypt plantations in Australia have expanded rapidly over the last decade. With increasing market competition from overseas plantations for both pulp and solid wood products, Australia must maintain a competitive edge through efficiencies in production and product quality. Breeding and deployment of genetically superior planting stock is part of the solution. With global climate chance and requirements for re-afforestation in drier zones, there is an increasing requirement to genetically improve drought tolerance. This project will provide genetic information and strategies to back Eucalyptus globulus breeding and deployment programs for traditional as well as drier environments. Read moreRead less
The genomics of climate adaptation in eucalypts. This project aims to investigate validated, rapid and pragmatic solutions to managing plant and animal maladaptation caused by global environmental change. Using Australia’s iconic blue gum (Eucalyptus globulus), this project will test strategies for identifying the major climatic predictors of, and key genomic regions that underlie, adaptation to climate change. By integrating climate variables and genome sequences with field trial-derived trait ....The genomics of climate adaptation in eucalypts. This project aims to investigate validated, rapid and pragmatic solutions to managing plant and animal maladaptation caused by global environmental change. Using Australia’s iconic blue gum (Eucalyptus globulus), this project will test strategies for identifying the major climatic predictors of, and key genomic regions that underlie, adaptation to climate change. By integrating climate variables and genome sequences with field trial-derived trait and performance data from decades of research and thousands of trees, we will develop validated DNA-based tools for monitoring the rate of adaptation in our native forests and identifying climate-ready seed sources for environmental and industrial plantings.Read moreRead less
Identification of genes controlling wood fibre properties in Eucalyptus nitens. Australian forestry is shifting to high intensity eucalypt plantations and increasingly focussing on development of breeds and clones with superior wood and pulp traits. Many of these traits are under moderate to strong genetic control and DNA markers have helped identify regions on eucalypt chromosomes that influence these traits. This project aims to identify the genes at these chromosomal locations that influence ....Identification of genes controlling wood fibre properties in Eucalyptus nitens. Australian forestry is shifting to high intensity eucalypt plantations and increasingly focussing on development of breeds and clones with superior wood and pulp traits. Many of these traits are under moderate to strong genetic control and DNA markers have helped identify regions on eucalypt chromosomes that influence these traits. This project aims to identify the genes at these chromosomal locations that influence wood fibre development and which have a strong influence on major commercial traits. The project will increase our understanding of wood and fibre development in eucalypts, and facilitate development of genetic markers to track superior genes during breeding.Read moreRead less
Unravelling the relationship between growth and wood properties in temperate eucalypts. The most important biological traits affecting profit in eucalypt plantations grown for pulpwood are growth, wood density and pulp yield. Shrinkage and collapse are important for timber production. Little information is available on the size and direction of the correlations between these traits, yet they are important in determining selection response in breeding as well as environmental impacts on pulp and ....Unravelling the relationship between growth and wood properties in temperate eucalypts. The most important biological traits affecting profit in eucalypt plantations grown for pulpwood are growth, wood density and pulp yield. Shrinkage and collapse are important for timber production. Little information is available on the size and direction of the correlations between these traits, yet they are important in determining selection response in breeding as well as environmental impacts on pulp and sawlog yield. The collaborating growers and breeders have brought together a unique base of Eucalyptus globulus and E. nitens field trials that will allow an integrated quantitative and molecular genetic study of the interrelationships amongst these key profit traits.Read moreRead less
Genetic association studies of fundamental wood fibre components in Pinus radiata resource populations. Radiata pine is Australia's premiere softwood plantation species occupying in excess of one million hectares, contributing over $18 billion to Australia's GNP and providing employment to 130,000 Australians. With a trade deficit in forest and forest products of $1.85 billion, current massive plantation establishment efforts are in train to reverse this trend. These have to be backed by researc ....Genetic association studies of fundamental wood fibre components in Pinus radiata resource populations. Radiata pine is Australia's premiere softwood plantation species occupying in excess of one million hectares, contributing over $18 billion to Australia's GNP and providing employment to 130,000 Australians. With a trade deficit in forest and forest products of $1.85 billion, current massive plantation establishment efforts are in train to reverse this trend. These have to be backed by research into the factors that determine the base resource's quality, growth and sustainability. Results will lead to improved resource quality, increased productivity and new industrial opportunities, directly improving our trade position and releasing pressure on our native forest resources.Read moreRead less
National Macadamia Conservation Program. Macadamia is a national icon, and the only indigenous Australian plant food crop to be commercialised. However, it is vulnerable to extinction in the wild, needing conservation action. University, government, industry and community sectors will work together applying cutting edge research methodologies to produce a systematic conservation and recovery plan for Macadamia. This requires: Habitat modelling to predict past, contemporary and potential distribu ....National Macadamia Conservation Program. Macadamia is a national icon, and the only indigenous Australian plant food crop to be commercialised. However, it is vulnerable to extinction in the wild, needing conservation action. University, government, industry and community sectors will work together applying cutting edge research methodologies to produce a systematic conservation and recovery plan for Macadamia. This requires: Habitat modelling to predict past, contemporary and potential distributions for advising resource discovery and rehabilitation; Genetic variation modelling to assess quality and distinctness of native genetic resources and potential for rehabilitation by natural colonisation; and Developing a unifying statistical framework to support this work.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE180100046
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$365,058.00
Summary
Capturing highly beneficial and persistent legume symbionts. This project aims to investigate impacts of climate change on the survival of symbiotic soil bacteria and the nutritional benefits they provide plants, using molecular technology. This project will generate new knowledge about the process of adaptation in symbiotic bacteria, by measuring genomic changes. Expected outcomes of this project include enhanced capacity to design ecological or genetic manipulations of soil bacteria to augment ....Capturing highly beneficial and persistent legume symbionts. This project aims to investigate impacts of climate change on the survival of symbiotic soil bacteria and the nutritional benefits they provide plants, using molecular technology. This project will generate new knowledge about the process of adaptation in symbiotic bacteria, by measuring genomic changes. Expected outcomes of this project include enhanced capacity to design ecological or genetic manipulations of soil bacteria to augment plant survival and health. Anticipated benefits include enhanced woodland restoration in a biodiversity hotspot, options to mitigate habitat damage from climate change, and strategies to increase agricultural productivity with less fertiliser.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE190100326
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$419,406.00
Summary
Genomics of drought adaptation in endangered Eucalyptus woodlands. This project aims to investigate divergence in drought response strategies among foundation Eucalyptus species, using the latest genomic advances. The project expects to contribute new knowledge of drought adaptation in trees, specifically identifying above and below ground interactions that may constrain evolutionary responses to climate change by assessing genotype-trait associations in an integrated, whole plant research model ....Genomics of drought adaptation in endangered Eucalyptus woodlands. This project aims to investigate divergence in drought response strategies among foundation Eucalyptus species, using the latest genomic advances. The project expects to contribute new knowledge of drought adaptation in trees, specifically identifying above and below ground interactions that may constrain evolutionary responses to climate change by assessing genotype-trait associations in an integrated, whole plant research model. Expected outcomes include enhanced capacity to design agroforestry and restoration breeding programs to increase tree productivity and resilience under increasing aridity. This will benefit the conservation of endangered Australian woodlands, restoration of degraded landscapes, and production forestry.Read moreRead less