American Chestnuts
- Thread starter letemgrow
- Start date
omicron1792
5 year old buck +
Scion wouldn’t do you much good. The blight would get the rootstock.
Darling 58 on the way.
Darling 58 on the way.
Troubles Trees
5 year old buck +
Did that get approved? Last I saw in the emails they were asking for public comment but that was a while ago.
I'd like to know how those few trees have avoided the blight for that long.
There has to be a smoking gun to it all.
S.T.Fanatic
5 year old buck +
Genetic modification
Hoytvectrix
5 year old buck +
Based on all that I've read, the blight resistant transgenic American chestnuts are all but approved for release. I think it will happen sometime in late summer.
It's a really fascinating case to deliberately release GMOs into the wild to reintroduce a species. First of its kind as far as I know.
It's a really fascinating case to deliberately release GMOs into the wild to reintroduce a species. First of its kind as far as I know.
omicron1792
5 year old buck +
Yep. Should be coming soon.
omicron1792
5 year old buck +
They have been back crossing trees like this for a long time, and haven’t really gotten anywhere. It’s a combination of factors that give rare trees some resistance, so the chance of passing it on is low. Also the time it takes to grow trees, test them for resistance with exposure, then breed them and start over is an issue.
With gmo darling it’s one gene. It’s 50% chance to pass on. And they can test nuts for it. It’s a game changer.
Hoytvectrix
5 year old buck +
As someone that's been aggressively growing "hybrid" and Chinese chestnut varieties, I'm wondering if I wouldn't have been better off leaving some space for the new GMO Americans.
omicron1792
5 year old buck +
Gonna be a while. Seedlings won’t make it out for a while
Natty Bumppo
5 year old buck +
There is something about their genetics that makes them able to defend themselves against the blight. Most genetic mutations lead to disastrous outcomes. But sometimes a genetic mutation can be beneficial, as in biological mutations that lead to evolution.
The ACCF crossed two such trees that survived the initial blight scourge.
Not sure it's a mutation, but it could be. Those original trees are still alive far as I know and a lot of the progeny is showing resistance to the blight and doing well also.
Below is the article to their breeding technique in 1982.
Breeding for Blight Resistance in
accf-online.org
Natty Bumppo
5 year old buck +
Great article. Thanks for the link.
When I was in college in the mid-90's there was a lot research coming out about hybrid chestnuts and efforts to save the American Chestnut. We went on field trips to explore stands of American chestnuts that were growing from the stumps of the old growth trees that were killed by the blight. At that time there were many known examples of trees that survived the blight scattered throughout the eastern US. Always found it interesting to think about what allowed these trees to survive when 99.99% of the standing timber chestnut was killed off.
Teeder
5 year old buck +
When the time comes, it may be worth removing a couple trees that aren't looking the bast to put these in.
I just hope it happens soon enough that I get to see the benefits.
blueKYstream
5 year old buck +
I attended the Boone County Arboretum's virtual conference in March of 2021 about the work done by researchers at SUNY-ESF in Syracuse, NY in introducing blight resistant wheat gene into the American chestnut genome. It really is a fascinating history leading up to now. As stated earlier, they're waiting on approval from the USDA. They've started the process of getting seedlings ready to sell. I'm not sure how many or if they'll have enough to meet demand out of the gate should it be approved (it's anyone's guess when that might be but hopefully it's soon). If you have one of the transgenic trees, offspring would, in theory and for sake of simplicity, have a 50% chance of carrying on that transgenic gene.
With that said, they have other cultivars (50:50 in the video but also touched on earlier) they've introduced the gene into. Approval on a few cultivars would presumably be quicker after this initial is approved. If I recall, I believe they've asked for people to notify them of American chestnuts that might be blight resistant in a variety of locations. If they can introduce the gene to those in different varieties, you increase the gene pool and possibility of varieties surviving in different locations. I'm not sure how many they will put the gene into should it be approved though. They don't want to patent/trademark (1:16:30 in video), so that nurseries can help propagate and reestablish quicker.
With that said, they have other cultivars (50:50 in the video but also touched on earlier) they've introduced the gene into. Approval on a few cultivars would presumably be quicker after this initial is approved. If I recall, I believe they've asked for people to notify them of American chestnuts that might be blight resistant in a variety of locations. If they can introduce the gene to those in different varieties, you increase the gene pool and possibility of varieties surviving in different locations. I'm not sure how many they will put the gene into should it be approved though. They don't want to patent/trademark (1:16:30 in video), so that nurseries can help propagate and reestablish quicker.
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Hoytvectrix
5 year old buck +
That was a fantastic video. Thanks for sharing.
Something that he kind of glossed over that I am sure is going to be the biggest hurdle is the "weediness" of the transgenic American chestnuts. In most currently approved transgenic plants, the advantage of the transgenic trait is only in response to an outside pressure and is in effect more easily to control the spread. For example, roundup ready crops only have an advantage in the environment if roundup is used. If you take away the roundup (or glyphosate), these crops will not take over the environment. Of course with roundup ready crops you still have to worry about other organisms like roundup resistant weeds or gene flow to wild type plants, but the roundup resistant crops themselves shouldn't be more competitive without the roundup.
I would think regulators are going to be concerned about the 100 or 1000 year timeline where blight resistant American chestnuts are dominating forests or expanding beyond their range. I'm not sure you would be able to put that genie back in the bottle if it takes decades to realize it is a problem.
I'm still a huge fan of the project and will be doing all I can to help.
blueKYstream
5 year old buck +
I believe that is part of the study put together that the USDA is evaluating. They are supposed go test to make sure it doesn't hurt the bees, butterflies, and on down the line. Of course, no test could ever include every last thing possible. However I know I heard somewhere that no harmful relationships were found and approval is expected (although things could always change). The biggest question is when.
Troubles Trees
5 year old buck +
When the ACF sent me the nuts to plant, they advised keeping them away from other types of chestnuts to prevent cross breeding and keeping the American strain as pure as possible. I would have to look to see if I still have it but I think they requested 500 feet from others like Chinese and Dunstans.
Troubles Trees
5 year old buck +
Hmmm I stand corrected, this manual says the opposite lol
The Backyard Breeder. This type has a grower
establish a couple of American chestnuts near a
couple of Chinese or hybrid chestnuts. Although
5-10 trees will be planted, no more than 4 should
be kept. When the time comes, and with more
than 2 trees, the excess trees will need to be
emasculated, the catkins removed, to facilitate
collection of proper seed type. The trees should
be given ample room. Plant on 20’ centers.
The Backyard Breeder. This type has a grower
establish a couple of American chestnuts near a
couple of Chinese or hybrid chestnuts. Although
5-10 trees will be planted, no more than 4 should
be kept. When the time comes, and with more
than 2 trees, the excess trees will need to be
emasculated, the catkins removed, to facilitate
collection of proper seed type. The trees should
be given ample room. Plant on 20’ centers.
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