gardener might end up never implant the haywire electric light again after the Royal Horticultural Society ( RHS ) and Reading University successfully mapped a daffodil ’s chloroplast genome for the first time .
When sold as wry bulb daffodils are impossible to tell apart , with 1,766 dissimilar cultivars - including pink , green , trumpeted and double - head – available in the UK .
In the first footstep towards identifying different cultivars in bulb kind , researchers from the RHS and Reading University map the full computer code which makes up the chloroplast genome – the deoxyribonucleic acid responsible for photosynthesis in flora .
The code was built by press out DNA from the foliage material of a pheasant ’s eye daffodil ( Narcissus poeticus ) arise at RHS Garden Wisley . The data was then examine and the 2 % relate to the chloroplast genome pulled out and assembled .
Never before done for daffodils , the team can now look for variations in the genome that could serve up as genetical markers and be good in distinguishing between cultivars . This could eventually be used to avoid the wrong bulbs being traded and aid conservation efforts , new breeding and the registration of cultivar .
The work could also be apply to other bulbous plants like snowdrops , crocus and hyacinths which are being busily plant by the UK ’s 27 million gardeners this fall .
John David , Head of Horticultural Taxonomy , at the Royal Horticultural Society said : “ This is an exciting first pace in identifying daffodil kind at the point they are most popularly bought but when there is nothing to secern them aside . With so many bulbs due to be establish this autumn it is a immense diligence and we trust our workplace might avert disappointment for professionals who plant en masse shot and gardeners who will often seek out their tried and test favourites . ”
Alastair Culham , Associate Professor of Botany , Reading University , added : “ The technology used in this project is fast make a motion and it will be both practical and affordable for mundane use within the next 10 years . As a keen gardener I have sometimes been disappointed to find exceptional bulbs I ’ve planted in the autumn have turned out to be less good varieties when they come in to flower in the springiness . Better direction of the supply chain and the ability to authenticate dormant bulbs should bar such mistakes in the future . ”
The first theme detailing the research is published inMitochondrial DNA Part B. The RHS has been responsible for registering daffodil cultivars for 110 year . For more information about daffodils visit theRHS web site .
For more information : Royal Horticultural Societywww.rhs.org.uk
