TITLE:
Effects of Xenia on Fruit and Seed in Vernicia fordii
AUTHORS:
Shifei Qin, Huijuan Zhang, Shuai Liu, Qingwei Zhang, Keming Luo
KEYWORDS:
Tung Tree, Xenia, Fruit Development, Oil Content
JOURNAL NAME:
American Journal of Plant Sciences,
Vol.11 No.11,
November
23,
2020
ABSTRACT: Tung tree, Vernicia fordii, is a plant
species producing industrial oil (tung oil). Although the cultivation of the tung
tree produces great economic value, some important genetic and physiological
traits in V. fordii have not been fully recognized. As one of them, the
effect of pollen on the maternal plant (xenia) is unknown in V. fordii,
which is an important part of the efficient cultivation system of many crops.
This study performed hybridization with three important tung cultivars (Dami,
Xiaomi and Putao) to evaluate the influence of pollen source on fruit and seed
development. The results revealed that xenia is present in V. fordii,
which influences fruit setting, fruit size, seed weight and oil content. Among
the cultivars investigated, the hybridization combination with Putao as a female
parent and Dami as male parent showed significant improvement of seed yield and
oil content than self-pollination, which could be considered to apply in
practice.