Genetic improvement of black locust: a prime agroforestry species

Abstract

Robinia pseudoacacia is one of the fastest growing treese in North America, it fixes atmospheric nitrogen, it has a very dense, attractive wood, and possesses many other attributes desirable for an agroforestry species. There is a large amount of genetic variation among and within families for growth, form, thorn length and other important traits. There is virtually no variation associated with geographic regions. A detailed plan for the genetic improvement and mass propagation of superior trees, through seed, root cuttings, and tissue culture is outlined. -Authors