Re: Re: Genetic diversity
Wayne Forrester (forrestr@mendel.Berkeley.EDU)
Thu, 12 Dec 1996 08:12:57 -0800 (PST)
Sorry, this is certainly not true. The species kept in
cultivation, while they may preserve the species, are not really going to
be preserving much diversity. Most of us cultivate plants under fairly
similar conditions, and are cultivating plants that came from only one or
a few individuals. There is no way to preserve significant diversity
unless a large number of plants, preferably from different sites, are
cultivated and one keeps careful track of each plant, where it came from,
and who it's parents were. Finally, the diversity represented by all the
plants of a species grown by everyone around the world cultivating that
species is probably insignificant relative to the plants growing in a
different site. Unfortunately, I absolutely do not buy the idea that we
are generating or selecting for genetic diversity in cultivation. In
fact, we are doing the opposite as I believe Michael pointed out.
Wayne Forrester
> Yes, I see where you're taking this. But this will only be true
> for plants which are large and so don't get any sexual reproduction.
> Like Nepenthes. Anyway, there's a way around that too... Just
> mail someone pollen, if you can (Andrew, I sent the pollen to you).
> Truely, I think you're underestimating genetic diversity. What I
> mean to say is each person will manage to keep their easily grown
> plants for their own selective conditions thereby *increasing*
> the overall genetic diversity. In this way, so long as sexual
> reproduction is kept fairly common, my plants will be more different
> than your plants, while plants growing wild near each other will be
> more similar, overall. That's an increase in diversity, right?
> Keep in mind that evolution doesn't just happen, something must
> start killing off what would normally be a viable (and valuable) trait
> to make room for what is new.
>
> Dave Evans
>