Handbook 1996 : Faculty of Agriculture, Forestry and Horticulture (Volume 4 page 25)
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Year 4 Forestry.
Credit points: 12.5
Coordinator: Dr P K Ades.
Contact: 36 hours of lectures and 36 hours of practicals.
Timetable: First semester.
Objectives:
On completion of this subject students are expected to: have acquired a basic understanding of population and quantitative genetic principles relevant to forest tree improvement; know of and be able to apply the methods used to modify economically important traits in forest tree species in breeding programs in Australia and elsewhere; understand the operational methods of producing genetically improved seed or vegetative propagules for plantations, as well as the advantages and limitations of these various methods; have measured a simple genetic field test, analysed the data and estimated simple genetic parameters, and produced a written report of the results and conclusions; understand the principles of gene conservation, effective population size and population structure as they affect the design and management of conservation areas; have critically analysed published information and written a paper reviewing a current topic in tree breeding or a related area.
Content:
Basic quantitative genetics; continuous variation, truncation selection, heritability, gene effects, breeding values, variances, genotype by site interaction, genetic correlation. Methods, concepts and case studies in tree breeding for increased yield and quality. Seed orchards, vegetative propagation and clonal forestry. Coancestry, covariance between relatives, estimation of heritability. Inbreeding and its management in breeding programs. Natural variation in trees, provenance testing. Breeding for disease and insect resistance or tolerance. Direct and indirect selection, information from relatives, multi-trait selection, selection indices. Maintenance of variation in natural populations; drift, migration, differentiation between populations, models of population structure, effects of forestry practices. At least one field excursion to illustrate aspects of the lectures.
Assessment:
A 3-hour written examination at the end of the subject, one written assignment of up to 5,000 words and short written problem sets.
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Handbook 1996 : Faculty of Agriculture, Forestry and Horticulture (Volume 4 page 25)
Status: Official 1996 Date created: Oct 9 1995 Last modified: Oct 9 1995 Authorised by: Academic Registrar Email enquiries: Course_Information@registrar.unimelb.edu.au
Maintained by: School of Forestry, Faculty of Agriculture, Forestry and Horticulture.
Copyright © University of Melbourne 1995,1996.