Seashore Paspalum, Paspalum vaginatum O.Swartz, is considered an environmentally friendly and sustainable turf grass because of its tolerances to abiotic stresses, especially to high salt concentration. Most commercial seashore paspalum cultivars available are vegetative clones of selections made from the naturally occurring ecotypes. Distinguishing among cultivars based solely upon morphological traits is difficult and has proven challenging for breeders and inspectors charged with certifying cultivar purity. We studied the genetic variation among different commercial cultivars using Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism (AFLP) and found a very narrow genetic background within commercial cultivars. Our research indicates that fingerprinting of cultivars using AFLPs provides an option of identification for commercial cultivars and also provides useful information for future turfgrass improvement efforts.
See more of Graduate Student Poster Competition: Breeding and Stress
See more of C05 Turfgrass Science
See more of The ASA-CSSA-SSSA International Annual Meetings (November 6-10, 2005)