Presented atPoplar Council of Canada Genetics Workshop and

2012 Annual General Meeting

August 21‐23, 2012Québec City

Risks to current collections in Canada – Québec IUFRO

collections case study

Pierre PérinetDirection de la recherche forestière

Outline

• Québec MRNF Breeding Program

• Parental populations – ex. of decline

• New hybrid populations in evaluation

– Breeding of 1995, 1996, 1998, 2004, 2012

• New clonal selections

• Clones for SRIC

• Populus deltoides (D)• P. balsamifera (B)• P. trichocarpa (T)• P. nigra (N)• P. maximowiczii (M)

Québec MRNF Breeding Program

Intra- and interspecific breeding:

Marginal agricultural land for poplar cultivation

Short growth season

No herbicide

Rooted stock (stecklings)

Public land

No herbicide

Max hybrids

Parental populations of exotic and native spp. for breeding

P. maximowiczii

P. nigra

P. suaveolens (China), 2007

P. deltoides in northern area

Plus-tree selection in a progeny test

25 year-old plus-trees of Trichocarpa

Tricho progenies 1999

Nigra collection 1983Max collection 1988

Poplar decline

DT windbreak

Tricho collection 2000

Max 1988, Villeroy

Max 1988, Villeroy

P. nigra, Villeroy

• P. maximowiczii × P. trichocarpa (MT)• P. maximowiczii × P. nigra (MN)

• P. maximowiczii × P. balsamifera (MB)

• P. deltoides × P. maximowiczii (DM)

• P. deltoides × P. trichocarpa (DT) = P. ×generosa

• P. deltoides × P. nigra (DN) = P. ×canadensis

• P. maximowiczii × (P. deltoides × P. trichocarpa) (M×DT)

• (P. deltoides × P. nigra) × P. maximowiczii (DN×M)

Hybrids

915508 DN×M

Hybrid populations :1995 Breeding

• P. deltoides × P. maximowiczii

LotbinièreDM

16 years

1996 breeding DM 6850

1998 breeding

Hybrid populations :1996 & 1998 Breeding

• MB, MT, MN, DM andother Max hybrids

• ≈ 1 500 clones underfield testing, Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jeanand Bas-Saint-Laurent

• P. maximowiczii × P. trichocarpa (MT)• P. maximowiczii × P. nigra (MN)

1996 breedingMT 6127Progeny test

14 years, Shipshaw

• P. maximowiczii × P. trichocarpa (MT)

1998 breeding

MTLotbinière, 2nd year

New MB selection

1998 breeding

1993 breeding

M×DN 9195 MT×M 9238DM 9001

From the 2004 Breeding :

• 285 clones (MD, MT×M, MT×B, MT×D, M×DN) : clonal test planted in 2012 – Abitibi

• MB to be selected soon from a progeny test

New MD selectionNew MT×T selection

Northwest QuébecAbitibi region

2012 breeding:

• M×T, T×M, T×T

T

Traits – SRIC1

• high rooting percentage of cuttings under field conditions;

• high survival rates of sprouts after frequent coppicing;

• capacity to tolerate very high stand density, with sprout density not lower than 5000 per ha;

• continuous high dendromass yield over frequent and repeated coppicing;

• balanced stem dimensions (diameter and height) suitable for mechanical harvesting.

1 Paris et al. 2011.Biomass & Bioenergy 35: 1524-1532

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Alain Fauchon, François Caron, Mario Morin, Mario Potvin, Marie-Josée Mottet, Danielle Lamontagne, Nicole Robert, Pier-Luc Faucher, Jean Ménétrier and the personnel at theDRF.

Thanks to all our collaborators and partnersin Québec and the regions for their support.