Project Name: Willow Biomass Production - New York

Point of Contact: L.P. Abrahamson, (315) 470-6777; T. Volk (315) 470-6774, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry, 1 Forestry Drive, Syracuse, NY 13210

Project Start Date: 01/1996   Projected Completion Date: 12/2004  Renewal Plans: Y

Summary of Project: This continuing project will evaluate experimental plantings of willow and poplar clones to determine clonal and environmental effects on growth, understand biomass partitioning and nutrient use efficiency, and characterize pest occurrence. In addition, this project will maintain and expand cutting orchards of genetically improved willow clones in preparation for commercial-scale trials. Basic physiological information on clones currently being propagated and tested on a large scale, and new clones being propagated in preparation for testing, is necessary to assist in clonal selection and the overall genetic improvement effort. Large genotype-by-environment interaction is a problem facing willow breeders, but the physiological basis of these interactions are poorly understood. Allometric, whole-plant and tissue level physiological measures will be related to field performance in Tully, NY; Rhinelander, WI; and East Lansing, MI. This project is conducted in cooperation with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYDEC) at the NYDEC Saratoga Tree Nursery, Saratoga, NY and expanded during both 1996 and 1997 with support from the USDA Cooperative States Research, Education, and Extension Service.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01 - Evaluate and report results of first, three-year full coppice harvest.

Outyears - Evaluate and report results of second, three-year full coppice harvest.

Expand the regional test network to include new clonal selections coming out of the willow breeding project.

Funding vehicle: University subcontract

Date Revised: February 15, 2001

Project Name: Willow Breeding in the Northeast/North Central U.S.

Point of Contact: Larry Smart, (315) 470-6737, College of Environmental Science and Forestry, 1 Forestry Drive, Syracuse, NY 13210

Project Start Date: 8/2000   Projected Completion Date: 8/2005   Renewal Plans: Y

Summary of Project: This recently initiated project will assemble existing superior willow clones and collect new potentially productive willow clones for use in a hybrid breeding project designed to create highly productive, pest-free willow clones for the northeast and north central regions of the U.S. Hybrid willow have been demonstrated to be high productive in several locations in the northeastern U.S. These clones have for the most part been obtained from breeding programs outside the U.S. A larger number of suitable clones is needed to expand the area potentially available to high-density willow silviculture and to assure continued pest resistance and productivity over diverse climatic and edaphic conditions. Existing superior clones will be crossed with newly selected, locally adapted clones in order to create a new willow breeding population for the northeast and north central regions of the U.S. This project was initiated through a solicitation released in FY 1999. It supports the DOE Biomass Power for Rural Development integrated demonstration project initiated in 1996.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01 - Complete willow clone collection. Make observations of susceptibility to rust and insects in F1 progeny genetic trials (1998 crosses). Attempt at least 25 additional intraspecific and/or interspecific willow crosses.

Outyears - Select parental willow clones for breeding program and initiate crosses. Transfer 10–20 new clonal selections by 2004 to regional field trials.

Funding vehicle: University subcontract

Date Revised: February 15, 2001

Project Name: Selection and Breeding of Pest-Resistant Clones of Populus in the North Central Region

Point of Contact: Richard B. Hall, (515) 294-1453, E. R. Hart, (515) 294-8623, and T.C. Harrington, Iowa State University, 213 Beardshear Hall, Ames, IA, 50011

Project Start Date: 1/1998   Projected Completion Date: 01/2003  Renewal Plans: Y

Summary of Project: This continuing project will select and breed cottonwood (Populus deltoides) germplasm with the best potential for biomass production in the region; screen this germplasm for pest resistance, rootability, and initial growth; produce clonal stock of the best selections to support regional testing of adaptability and productivity; establish correlations between laboratory, nursery, and field traits; quantify pest impacts; and evaluate novel types of pest resistance. Emphasis is being placed on selection and breeding for dry weight yield potential, pest resistance and ease of propagation.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01-Complete a set of 40 crosses among parents adapted to Iowa and southern Minnesota. Complete greenhouse trials of three transgenic clones for resistance to cottonwood leaf beetle.

Outyears - Complete core breeding matrix. Produce clones specifically adapted to southern Minnesota.

Summarize disease damage evaluations for 1997 Regional Clonal test. Scale-up 10-20 new clonal selections bi-annually for inclusion in the regional field trials

Funding vehicle: University subcontract

Date Updated: October 6, 2000

Project Name: Limitations on SRWC Growth in the Southeast United States

Point of Contact: Gerald A. Tuskan, (865) 576-8141; S. D. Wullschleger; P. J. Hanson, Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6422

Project Start Date: 03/1996   Projected Completion Date: 02/2001  Renewal Plans: N

Summary of Project: This continuing project evaluates whole-plant carbon budgets for individual clones or species to determine the relative limitations placed on above-ground production by respiratory processes in stems, branches and roots and tests the impacts of fertigation on tissue- specific physiological parameters.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01 - Complete 4 manuscripts on allocation, osmotic adjustment, growth models and soil carbon related to fertigation of Populus, sycamore and sweetgum.

Outyears - Develop a multiyear proposal in collaboration with industrial partners to examine limitations of above-ground productivity.

Funding vehicle: Internal project

Date Revised: February 15, 2001

Project Name: Poplar Pathology

Point of Contact: Jon Johnson (253) 445-4522; Washington State University, Research & Extension Center, 7612 Pioneer Way East, Puyallup WA 98371-4998

Project Start Date: 01/1999   Projected Completion Date: 12/2003  Renewal Plans: Y

Summary of Project: This continuing project will attempt to clarify the various physiological and morphological aspects of resistance in hybrid poplar. The two most important diseases that limit poplar productivity in the U.S. are Melampsora leaf rusts and Septoria stem canker. Selection and breeding for resistant planting stock is the only economically viable means of eliminating or minimizing the impacts of these two diseases. Stable resistance will ultimately result in higher yields due to higher productivity rates per unit area. Currently we know very little about the mechanisms of resistance. The approach will involve completing control-crosses for hypotheses- driven genetic tests of disease resistance; infusing resistance genes into commercially important hybrids; determining the number of genes involved in resistance; characterizing changes in carbon and nitrogen allocation during disease development; investigating the silvicultural treatments that minimize disease symptom development; and determination of whether Sphaerellopsis filum is a efficacious in parasitizing Melampsora rusts.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01 - Report on simulated Melampsora rust defoliation impact on poplar tree growth and productivity.

Outyears - Report on greenhouse studies to quantify growth rate and physiological changes in response to rust infection and defoliation. Supply disease resistant hybrid to midwest for testing.

Funding vehicle: University subcontract

Date Revised: October 6, 2000

Project Name: Disease Resistance in Short-rotation Black Cottonwood

Point of Contact: George Newcomb, (208) 885-5289; University of Idaho, Department of Forest Resources, Moscow, ID 83844-1133

Project Start Date: 3/00   Projected Completion Date: 12/2004  Renewal Plans: Y

Summary of Project: This continuing project will evaluate mechanisms of disease resistance in an effort to reduce the economic impacts associated with infection. This will be accomplished by determining (1) how many QTLs govern partial resistance in poplar and what are the physiological costs associated with partial resistance as opposed to major-gene resistance, (2) if soil pH directly affects bark pH and if there is a genetic mechanism of resistance to canker that may involve bark chemistry, and (3) testing the efficiency of using a mycroparasite to control rust.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01 - Develop a co-culture assay for rust/poplar as part of an in vitro screening technique. Begin to identify QTLs that govern partial rust resistance in Populus.

Outyears - Introduce a hyperparasite of rust into the Pacific Northwest in a field trial.

Funding vehicle: University subcontract

Date Revised: January 24, 2001

Project Name: Poplar Molecular Genetics Cooperative

Point of Contact: Toby Bradshaw, Jr., (206) 616-1796, University of Washington, Seattle WA 98195-4115

Project Start Date: 6/2000   Projected Completion Date: 6/2005  Renewal Plans: Y

Summary of Project: This continuing project will use molecular markers and genome maps to pinpoint quantitative trait loci (QTLs) controlling tree growth, wood properties, stress tolerance, and disease resistance as a means of increasing our understanding of the mechanisms that cause variation in productivity and quality traits in hybrid poplar and as a means to accelerate progress in poplar breeding. The key to sustained genetic improvement in Populus is a detailed understanding of the genetic architecture of important phenotypic traits such as tree growth, wood quality, and disease resistance. Such an understanding will accelerate progress in breeding by providing improved methods to identify superior clones for immediate commercial use and parents for the next generation of hybrids. Genetic maps composed of molecular markers provide a powerful tool for studying the inheritance of biomass yield and quality traits. Previous results from QTL mapping in three-generation hybrid poplar pedigrees indicate that there are chromosomal regions with large effects on growth, form, stress tolerance, and disease resistance. These results are being confirmed and extended by creating new QTL mapping pedigrees of very large family size, developing 'universal' genetic maps for these families, and testing a wider variety of traits, including the chemical and physical components of the woody biomass. The PMGC breeding program, cooperatively funded by state federal and industrial participation, is designed to produce genetically-informative pedigrees, but also is likely to generate commercially-valuable hybrid poplar clones for industry in the Pacific Northwest, upper Midwest, and Southeast.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01 - Continue work to isolate leaf rust resistance gene by map-based cloning. Construct a detailed restriction map around the MXC3 leaf rust resistance gene. Recommend 10—20 clones that merit testing in other regions of the U.S. Begin phenotypic analysis of TB1 'panhandle' transgenic Populus to assess the role of TB1 in branching and crown architecture.

Outyears - Evaluate the genetic control, and therefore, the opportunity to modify branching. Develop phytochrome B-suppressed transgenic Populus to test for stem growth enhancement at low planting density. Test hypotheses that Populus sp. carries a single dominant gene for resistance to Septoria stem canker.

Funding vehicle: University subcontract

Date Revised: February 15, 2001

Project Name: Populus Crop Development in the Southeast United States

Point of Contact: Sam B. Land, Jr. (601) 325-2786 (MSU); M. Stine (504) 388-4137 (LSU), D. L. Rockwood (352) 846-0897 (UFL), Mississippi State University, Forest and Wildlife Research Center, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS 39762; Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, P.O. Box 25055, Baton Rouge, LA 70894-5055; University of Florida, IFAS/Sponsored Programs, P.O. Box 110110, Gainesville, FL 32611-0110

Project Start Date: 04/2000   Projected Completion Date: 12/2004   Renewal Plans: Y

Summary of Project: This continuing project will evaluate and scale-up improved genetic clones of eastern cottonwood (Populus deltoides Bartr.) and its hybrids for use in energy and fiber crops throughout the southeastern United States. This will be accomplished by (a) maintaining collections of cottonwood clones and trials from the earlier work, (b) selecting from first-stage trials those clones capable of increased biomass production for many sites in the region, and (c) establishing selections in second-stage trials with more replications on more sites.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01 - Screen clones from sources throughout the southeastern United States for growth and adaptability to both upland and bottomland sites. Make preliminary evaluations of select clones for second-stage clonal screening trials.

Outyears - Recommend select clones for second-stage clonal screening trials. Establish second stage clonal screening trials. Establish scale-up nursery.

Funding vehicle: Interagency agreement, USDA, Southern Research Station

Date Updated: February 15, 2001

Project Name: Populus Breeding in the Southeastern United States.

Point of Contact: Gerald Tuskan (865) 546-8141, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6422.

Project Start Date: 2001   Projected Completion Date: 2006  Renewal Plans: TBD

Summary of Project: This new project, to be initiated through a solicitation, will establish a Populus Crop Development Center in the southeastern U.S. and will be modeled after the existing BFDP Populus projects in the Pacific Northwest and Midwest, where integrated crop research and development is centered around a principal breeding effort. Breeding efforts within these projects focus on genotype assembly, controlled-crossing, pedigree development, clonal progeny testing and clonal release. The supportive research associated with these breeding efforts can include basic plant physiology, pathology and entomology, and/or integrated silviculture, depending upon perceived constraints or obstacles in achieving the designated BFDP productivity goals of 5-10 dry tons/acre/year.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01- Place subcontract for Development Center.

Outyears - Begin breeding efforts. By 2010, transfer 10-40 select clones to regional field trials for commercial-scale evaluations.

Funding vehicle: TBD

Date Updated: October 6, 2000

Project Name: Regional Testing of Populus Clones

Point of Contact: Don E. Riemenschneider, (715) 362-1115, USDA Forest Service, North Central Forest Experiment Station, Forestry Sciences Laboratory, 5985 Highway K, Rhinelander, WI 54501

Project Start Date: 8/1995  Projected Completion Date: 12/2000  Renewal Plans: Y

Summary of Project: This ongoing project continues our efforts to expand and accelerate poplar selection and clonal release in the north-central United States by implementing a regional testing program for Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin and Michigan. Tests are established every two years and test clones are evaluated through at least 1/2 rotation age (5 to 6 out of 10 to 12 years). Multiple traits are evaluated simultaneously, including tree height, stem caliper, and resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses. Collaborators include experts in pathology, entomology, physiology and genetics to provide a multidisciplinary approach to breeding and selection. This project provides estimates of genetic and environmental effects on the growth of new Populus clones. Results of the project include new clonal selections that equal or exceed the performance of existing standards and new information on clonal stability that will: 1) allow the delineation of breeding zones in our region and 2) guide funding decisions so that research investment matches crop development needs. The project’s objectives are being accomplished by operating on a cooperative basis with several organizations that include WesMin County (Minnesota) Soil and Water Conservation District, the University of Minnesota, Iowa State University, the University of Wisconsin, and Michigan State University. Cooperators in the Regional Testing of Populus Clones are supported through Federal Assistance Agreements with North Central Forest Experiment Station (NCFES). Funds received through these Agreements are used to complete site preparation, planting, plantation maintenance, measurements and data analyses.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01 - Develop a regional field trial at an additional site in southern Minnesota. Establish four population of hybrids specifically created to evaluate relationship between genotype and environment.

Outyears - Establish a subsample of a pedigreed population for which a high density genetic map is being developed. Plant a minimum of 20 clones from each of four populations developed in each alternating year. Transfer 2–5 new clones to private sector (nurseries or industry) by 2003.

By 2005, demonstrate 10–15% average yield improvement at mid-rotation of pest and disease resistant clones over 3 regional trials representing a range of site qualities.

Funding vehicle: Interagency agreement

Date Revised: January 24, 2001

Project Name: Minnesota Hybrid Poplar Research Cooperative

Point of Contact: Edward Wene (218( 281-7600), Agricultural Utilization Res. Institute, University of Minnesota, P. O. Box 599, Crookston MN 56716.

Project Start Date: 9/2000   Projected Completion Date: 9/2004  Renewal Plans: Y

Summary of Project: This continuing project will produce genetically superior hybrid poplar trees, improve cultural practices, increase yield and provide technical assistance to cooperative members and the public. The focus is to provide a research foundation to produce wood fiber that has the highest value to the grower in order to successfully establish trees as an alternative agricultural crop. The cooperative’s mission is to (1) produce genetically superior cottonwood and hybrid poplar trees, (2) improve cultural practices, (3) increase biomass yields, and (4) provide technical assistance to cooperative members and the public. This project leverages the funds provided by approximately 7 industry and 4 university/USDA members.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01 - Communicate results of breeding and field testing of new hybrids to cooperative members.

Outyears - Communicate results of various planting and maintenance practices to cooperative members. Transfer selected clones into regional field trials.

Funding vehicle: University subcontract

Date Revised: February 15, 2001

Project Name: Short Rotation Woody Crops Cooperative Research Program

Point of Contact: Stan D. Wullschleger, (865) 574-7839 Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6422

Project Start Date: 4/1999   Projected Completion Date: 12/2001  Renewal Plans: Y

Summary of Project: This continuing project supports participation in a cooperative established to serve as an experimental platform to collect fundamental crop and soil data at the Department of Energy’s Savanna River Site in cooperation with USDA-Forest Service Savannah River Institute. Priority issues that are being investigated by the SRWC Program include understanding fundamental mechanisms involved in productivity, monitoring local environmental impacts of short-rotation forests, and studying insects and disease susceptibility. BFDP’s participation leverages the funds provided by 5 industry members. The core projects supported by the cooperative will be supplemented with external funds brought to the coop by external industrial researchers and university collaborators.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01 - Complete installation of automated weather station for monitoring of field environmental conditions.

Outyears - Complete installation of suction lysimeters for soil solution sampling and chemical analyses. Complete annual height and diameter growth measurements for cottonwood, loblolly pine, sweetgum and sycamore through a complete rotation. Develop and communicate to the public, recommendations for environmentally acceptable, high-yield SRWC in the southeastern coastal plains by 2005.

Funding vehicle: Interagency Agreement

Date Compiled: February 15, 2001

Project Name: Willow Biomass Production - Wisconsin and Michigan

Point of Contact: Jud G. Isebrands (715) 362-1115, USDA Forest Service, Forestry Sciences Laboratory, 5985 Highway K, Rhinelander WI 54501

Project Start Date: 02/01/1994   Projected Completion Date: 09/01/2003   Renewal Plans: Y

Summary of Project: This continuing project will establish experimental plantings of willow and poplar clones to determine clonal and environmental effects on growth, understand biomass partitioning and nutrient use efficiency, and characterize pest occurrence. In addition, this project will maintain and expand cutting orchards of genetically improved willow clones in preparation for commercial-scale trials. Basic physiological information on clones currently being propagated and tested on a large scale, and new clones being propagated in preparation for testing, is necessary to assist in clonal selection and the overall genetic improvement effort. Large genotype- by-environment interaction is a problem facing willow breeders, but the physiological basis of these interactions are poorly understood. Allometric, whole-plant and tissue level physiological measures will be related to field performance in Tully, NY and Rhinelander, WI. Data will be analyzed and results will be published jointly by researchers in NY and WI. This project is conducted in cooperation with New York State Energy Research and Development Authority and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYDEC) at the NYDEC Saratoga Tree Nursery, Saratoga, NY through the College of Environmental Science and Forestry and expanded during both 1996 and 1997 with support from the USDA Cooperative States Research, Education, and Extension Service.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01 - Report results of willow herbicide screening study. Complete willow clone collection.

Outyears - Select parental willow clones for breeding program and initiate crosses. Transfer 10–20 new clonal selections by 2004 to regional field trials.

Funding vehicle: Interagency agreement

Date Revised: January 24, 2001

Project Name: Tree Genetic Engineering Research Cooperative

Point of Contact: S.H. Strauss, (541) 737-6578; R. Meilan, (541) 737-6097, Oregon State University, Forest Science Dept., Corvallis, OR 97331-4501

Project Start Date: 6/2000   Projected Completion Date: 9/2004  Renewal Plans: Y

Summary of Project: This continuing project will conduct research and transfer technology to industry for use of genetically engineered trees in short-rotation plantation culture. Current research projects include: improving transformation efficiency; engineering herbicide resistance, insect resistance, and reproductive sterility; and assessing the genetic risks of transgenic poplars. These practical applications of genetic engineering can provide numerous benefits to biomass producers by: 1) enhancing tree growth, 2) allowing use of marginal land, 3) improving product quality, 4) decreasing management costs, and 5) reducing environmental impacts. Interspecific hybridization has led to the development of very fast-growing lines of hybrid poplar. Some of these hybrid lines are now being grown in large commercial plantations throughout the U.S. and Canada. Poplars are primarily grown for pulp and biomass, but are also valuable for removal of agrochemicals from groundwater, bioremediation of polluted sites, and for stream bank stabilization and restoration in riparian buffer strips. Genetic engineering will improve poplar’s utility for short-rotation intensive culture. Although hybrid poplars have tremendous growth potential, they are very susceptible to insect herbivory, vegetative competition, and a variety of pathogens. Genes are now available to ameliorate these shortcomings; introducing them into commercially important hybrid clones will greatly enhance their usefulness.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01 - Organize/convene a symposium on ecological assessment of transgenic trees. Continue work to develop means for control of floral development.

Outyears - Publish results of risk analysis on the deployment of transgenic poplars. Produce and field-test transgenic cottonwood containing flowering-control genes.

Funding vehicle: University subcontract

Date Revised: February 15, 2001

Project Name: Willow Gender Determination

Point of Contact: Gerald A. Tuskan, (423) 576-6830; Lee Gunter, (423) 576-7697 Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Environmental Sciences Division, P.O. Box 2008, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6422

Project Start Date: 10/1998   Projected Completion Date: 9/2001  Renewal Date: Y

Summary of Project: This continuing project will isolate and characterize a gene known to control femaleness in hybrid willow. Gender is known to influence overall productivity in both Populus and willow, with a bias towards male in advanced generation breeding programs. Furthermore, flowering may impact our ability to use transgenic materials in commercial biomass energy settings. There are no isolated genes in any plant species that are known to control gender. However, flanking DNA markers have been identified in a single segregating family of hybrid willow that are associated with femaleness in all tested progeny. These markers will be used to isolate the gene(s) that are controlling gender. The isolated sequences will then be tested in transformed individuals to validate its function. Such a gene could then be used 1) in a marker- aided selection scheme as part aof a effort to obtain equal numbers of males and females in a breeding program, 2) to modify gender in selected individuals, and 3) to study the mode of actions with the intent of eliminating flowering in transgenic individuals.

Milestones/Accomplishments:

FY01 -Verify sex ratios as predicted by genetic markers and evaluate the potential for using DNA markers to identify gender in seedlings.

Outyears - Begin sequencing to identify genetic locus influencing gender. Complete the evaluation of DNA marker development for gender and wood properties in willow; publish final report in FY 2002.

Funding vehicle: Internal project

Date Revised: October 6, 2000