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Background: Effective matching of genotypes and environments is required for the species to reach optimal productivity and act effectively for carbon sequestration. A common garden experiment across five different environments was undertaken to assess genotype x environment interaction (GxE) of coast redwood in order to understand the performance of genotypes across environments. Results: The quantitative genetic analysis discovered no GxE between investigated environments for diameter at breast height (DBH). However, no genetic component was detected at one environment possibly due to stressful conditions. The implementation of universal response function allowed for the identification of important environmental factors affecting species productivity. Additionally, this approach enabled us to predict the performance of species across the New Zealand environmental conditions. Conclusions: In combination with quantitative genetic analysis which identified genetically superior material, the URF model can directly identify the optimal geographical regions to maximize productivity. However, the finding of ideally uncorrelated climatic variables for species with narrow ecological amplitude is rather challenging, which complicates construction of informative URF model. This, along with a small number of tested environments, tended to overfit a prediction model which resulted in extreme predictions in untested environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exotic plant invasions are widely observed to have strong biogeographic patterns with invasive species occurring at higher abundances in their introduced range when compared with their native range. However, only few field studies have validated this assumption by comparing plant populations of multiple species in their native and introduced ranges and have evaluated to what extent changes in sexual and clonal reproduction potentially have contributed to the success of plant invasions. Here, we present the results of a comparative field study in both the native ( Germany) and the introduced ( New Zealand, NZ) ranges of six clonal plant species with different invasive status: Achillea millefolium L., Pilosella officinarum Vaill., Hypericum perforatum L., Prunella vulgaris L., Leucanthemum vulgare Lam. and Lotus pedunculatus Cav. We hypothesized that all six species show better performance in introduced NZ than in native German populations and tested if population structures investigated at different scales provide a useful tool to identify differences between native and introduced occurrences. In 10 populations per species and country we assessed plant density and flowering proportion at the population scale and around individual plants, thereby identifying the 'crowdedness' of the populations. Furthermore, we collected individual plants and determined the number of attached clonal organs and plant biomass. For all six species crowdedness in NZ populations was higher than in German populations. Additionally, overall population density of four species and the production of clonal organs (expressed as total number or per biomass ratio) of three species were higher in NZ than in Germany. When measured around individual plants, the flowering proportion was higher in native German populations of Pilosella officinarum, Hypericum perforatum and Leucanthemum vulgare. Although the study species differed in their invasive status, our findings show that for all six species performance was better in introduced than in native populations. Furthermore, this study emphasizes that multiple measures of plant performance, different spatial scales and differences among species should be taken into account when trying to identify biogeographic differences in the performance of weed species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clonal trials of Pinus radiata D. Don (radiata pine), representing two populations (or breeds), one selected for growth and form (GF) and the other selected for high wood density as well as growth and form (HD), were replicated on two low-altitude New Zealand sites: Tarawera (pumice soil, 38°08′S) and Woodhill (coastal dune, 36°42′S). The GF material comprised 33 pair-crosses (19 parents) × 10 clones, and the HD material comprised 19 single-pair crosses (35 parents) × 10 clones, with six ramets per clone per site. Diameter (DBH), two tree-form variables, and needle retention (NRA) were assessed 8 years after planting, and wood density (DEN), acoustic velocity, and collapse were assessed 9 years after planting. The site differences were generally expressed more strongly in the GF population. Estimated genetic parameters were mostly similar for the two breeds, except that genotypic correlation between DBH and DEN was apparently zero in the HD population. Estimated broad-sense heritabilities (H2) were generally markedly higher than narrow-sense heritability estimates (h2), except with DEN. Estimated between-site type-B clonal genotypic correlations were generally high (>0.8) for wood properties. Overall, DBH showed adverse genetic correlations with wood properties. The Elite/Breed strategy appeared to be helpful in combating adverse genetic correlations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study determines the impact of an invasive herbaceous weed Tradescantia fluminensis on invertebrates within three lowland podocarp/ broadleaved forest remnants in southern North Island, New Zealand. Epigaeic invertebrates were sampled within three Tradescantia-infested plots and three non-infested plots at each of three sites using pitfall traps. The abundance of invertebrates was reduced in Tradescantia plots compared with non-Tradescantia plots if Collembola and Acarina, the two most abundant and variable orders, are excluded (647±123 (mean±SE) compared with 1153±370), though this difference is not statistically significant. There was no difference if they were included (3897±2530 compared with 2505±1095). Five of the 23 orders collected were sorted into recognisable taxonomic units (RTUs). RTU richness was lower in Tradescantia plots compared with non-Tradescantia plots (39.7±5.5 compared with 51.7±8.9) though there was weak statistical support. Detrended correspondence analyses separated Tradescantia and non-Tradescantia plots within sites when based on RTUs, but not when based on orders/families. Overall, impacts of Tradescantia were apparent despite large differences in invertebrate assemblages among sites. The impact of Tradescantia could be a result of the weed''s tall, dense vegetation structure and associated microclimate, relative to native ground covers. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]