Genotype-by-environment interaction in Dutch elm disease resistance

Abstract

Dutch elm disease (DED) is a devastating forest disease. Recently, the deployment of native resistant cultivars has prompted initiatives of elm reintroduction in Europe and North America. It is known that DED resistance varies with the tree genotype and is influenced by climatic factors. However, genotype-by-environment interactions in DED resistance remain largely unexplored. In this work, we examined whether there is genetic variation in DED resistance plasticity and the roles of tree growth, phenology and anatomical traits in plastic responses. We established two experimental plots with 12 Ulmus minor genotypes in two environmentally contrasting locations in Spain: Madrid, under an inland continental climate, and Valencia, under a coastal Mediterranean climate. We monitored growth and phenology detecting high plasticity in both traits. In the inland plot, genotypes were taller and showed a more synchronized phenology than in the coast. A first DED-pathogen inoculation was carried out 45 days after the average flushing date in each location, after which trees exhibited more symptoms inland. A second inoculation was carried out by dividing the coastal plot trees into early and late flushing trees and inoculating each group at 45 days after its average flushing date. Therein, susceptibility rose to a level close to the inland plot. In both inoculations, we detected a significant genotype-by-location interaction in DED resistance. The xylem anatomy revealed high plasticity and a significant genotype-by-location interaction in most traits. In the coastal trial, trees formed narrower vessels and stored more starch before inoculation. The synchrony of leaf phenology, higher growth rate, lower starch reserves and higher structural vulnerability of earlywood to DED possibly favored susceptibility in the inland plot. The varying responses of genotypes in phenology, growth and anatomy at both locations were likely related to the differences in DED resistance, which can have important consequences for elm reintroduction.