Plant Conservation, Gene Banking, and Genecology with Climate Change

RC Johnson

USDA-ARS Plant Genetic Resources, Pullman WA

Cooperators: Vicky Erickson, Brad St.Clair Nancy Shaw, Matt Horning (USFS); Barbara Hellier (ARS); Peggy Olwell, Scott Lambert, Mary Byrne (BLM)

Agricultural Research Service Outline

Part 1: Native plant conservation

Part 2: Genecology: the Mt. Brome example

Part 3: Links to climate change Part 1: Conservation •Compounding problems: invasive weeds, frequent fires, and climate change •Role of Seeds of Success (SOS) and the National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS) •In situ and ex situ conservation: why both are needed Genetic resources on the edge: -Climate change -Invasive weeds -Frequent fires -Overgrazing -Revegetation

Any response to climate change will require genetic resources, an essentially non- renewable resource Gaylen Hansen Genetic Erosion of Native Plant Diversity

DISTURBANCE INVASION

FIRE Seeds of Success Seeds of Success (SOS) was established in 2001 by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) An ongoing program to collect, conserve, and develop native plant materials for revegetation and restoration SOS and the National Plant Germplasm System are partnering; approximately 2,000 new native accessions have been acquired for the NPGS so far. SOS Native Plant Materials Development From collection to utilization National Plant Germplasm System, NPGS

WRPIS, Pullman WA ≈ 80,000 accessions total ≈6,000 natives Examples of U.S. native genera at the Pullman gene bank Achillea Festuca Achnatherum* Pseudoroegneria* Allium* Lotus Artemisia Trifolium Astragalus Onobrychis Bromus* Leymus* Elymus* Lupinus Poa* Vicia *Genecology work underway or planned NPGS and Natives Germplasm • Increasingly, native plant material is preferred for restoration and revegetation • Collecting and conserving diverse populations of key species for future use is critical, especially in the face of habitat loss and climate change • Knowledge of how diverse populations interact with environmental factors such as precipitation and temperature will help us plan for a changing climate. In situ and ex situ conservation In situ (“in the place”), plant populations in there normal and native habitat, on site -Naturally sustained and regenerated -Areas need identification and protection -Susceptible to climate change and other disturbances such as invasive weeds, fire -Complexity/expense arises with increasing numbers of species and in situ sites -Programs to monitor must have long term focus -Complimentary to ex situ conservation In situ Conservation Program with Native Allium

A. fibrillum in the Umatilla Forest, OR

Barbara Hellier with A. columbianum In the Turnbill Reserve near Spokane, WA In situ and ex situ conservation Ex situ (“off site”), conservation in botanical gardens, gene banks, other - Conserve plant species and populations that otherwise might become rare, lost, or extinct -Are immediately available and can be increased for revegetation\restoration -Regeneration is ex situ; subject to inadvertent selection, mechanical and genetic mixing, genetic bottlenecks, and enhanced drift associated with relatively small population size -Complementary to in situ conservation Blue penstemon Needle and thread

Two germplasm accessions collected through the Seeds of Success (SOS) program now conserved ex situ at the Pullman gene bank. More than 2000 SOS accessions are now conserved within the NPGS. Seed Storage: 4 C, 28% RH

 Distribution samples are kept in intermediate storage

Original seed packets are kept in long-term storage. Options include liquid nitrogen.  Seed Storage: -20 C Freezer In situ and ex situ conservation: a complementary back up system -An original ex situ collection may be kept “indefinitely” in long term cold storage -The ex situ sample is immediately available and can be replenished by additional collecting in situ -The ex situ sample can be carefully regenerated and seed stocks increased for utilization -If the in situ site is disturbed the ex situ collection may be used for restoration -Over time potential changes in in situ populations can be monitored and compared with the original seed collections Part 2: Genecology Linking adaption with environment Adapted Germplasm for the Intermountain West:

Genecology studies underway : Allium acuminatum, Tapertip onion (WRPIS, BLM) Achnatherum hymenoides, Indian ricegrass (WRPIS, UN-Reno, BLM) Bromus carinatus, Mountain Brome (WRPIS, USFS) Poa secunda, Sandberg bluegrass (WRPIS, USFS, ARS,BLM) Pseudoroegneria spicata, Bluebunch wheatgrass (WRPIS, USFS, BLM) Koeleria macrantha, Prairie Junegrass (USFS) Additional Planned at WRPIS: Achnatherum thurberianum, Thurber's needlegrass Leymus cinereus, Basin wildrye Using the Genecology Approach: Benefits

-Diverse collections of key native species facilities ex situ conservation. -Common gardens give a wealth of characterization data, enhancing collection utility. -Seed transfer zones are developed for revegetation with adapted germplasm -Science based in situ conservation sites can be established -Provides an understanding of how genetic diversity interacts with environment; helpful in future management decisions driven by climate change Mountain Brome is a predominantly self pollinating, cool season perennial bunchgrass. Seed zones needed for restoration, revegetation in the Blue Mountains

Jeanne R. Janish. 1977. © The New York Botanical Garden Mt. Brome collections at 145 Blue Mountain locations Environmental variation for Mt. Brome collection locations

Variable Range StDev Elevation 1535 m 247 m First fall frost 34.9 days 8.0 days Last spring frost 44.2 days 9.4 days Frost free season 74.9 days 17.1 days Mean annual temp 4.41 C 0.88 C Mean annual precip. 1170 mm 268 mm Diversity in size and habit

Mountain Brome

•Common gardens at Pullman and Central Ferry WA, 2004 and 2005 Phenotypic factors measured on Mountain Brome and their descriptions taken in the spring and summer of 2004 and 2005 at Central Ferry and Pullman WA Factor Description Winter survival Measured in early spring Date first heading Day of year when first inflorescence extends from sheath Plant habit Rated from 1 = prostate to 9 = upright after heading Leaf width Width of an upper, fully emerged leaf (cm) Leaf length Length of an upper, fully emerged leaf (cm) Leaf color Color of an upper,emerged leaf rated from1 = light green to 9 = dark green Leaf pubescence Rated from 1 = no pubescence to 9 = heavily pubescence Leaf texture Rated from 1= coarse to 9= fine on the entire plant before anthesis Leaf abundance Leafiness at heading rated from 1 = low to 9 = high before anthesis Head abundance Density of inflorescences per plant rated from 1 = no heads to 9 = high Plant height From soil surface to upper plant after anthesis (cm) Aerial dry matter Above ground plant dry weight cut at about 5 cm above ground

Crown diameter Measured perpendicular to rows after plants were cut for dry matter (cm) Principal components (PC’s) to “simplify” plant traits for regression modeling Mt. Brome plant traits = environmental/climatic variables

PC 1 = lat, long, elev, max temp, precip, fall frost date (Fit R2 = 46%) PC 2 = max temp, precip, aridity, min temp (Fit R2 = 40%) Mt. Brome: General Adaptation In the Blue Mountains Plants with: High,2200 m Lower temps -lower dry weight Higher precipitation -narrower crowns Shorter frost free period -fewer leaves, shorter -shorter development

Higher temps Plants with: Lower precipitation -higher dry weight Longer frost free period -wider crowns Low,750 m -more leaves, longer -longer development Plant traits as PC 1 = Environmental variables

Oregon Part 3: Links to Climate Change

All approaches to restoration require germplasm The Mountain Brome example and climate change

The Mt. Brome study has given an environmental framework for revegetation\restoration in the Blue Mountains How well will the models work with climate change? Need validation Within Mt. Brome, plants adapted to lower elevation may well migrate upward, but what if they don’t or don’t have time? The higher elevation plant material may be lost or only survive in special niche areas; an ex situ collection is needed Scenario 1: Limited conserved diversity

Decreased genetic diversity Disturbance: Fire, invasive weeds, other

Loss of potentially adaptive alleles: increased genetic vulnerability New disturbance: rapid change in environment/climate

Failure to adapt

Increased risk of extinction: local populations and perhaps species

Adapted from Jump et al. 2009, Review Trends in Plant Science Vol.14 No.1 Scenario 2: Conserved Diversity with Genecology

Disturbance: Revegetation according to adaptive seed zone Fire, invasive weeds, other

Use knowledge of adaptation and in situ New disturbance: monitoring to estimate shifts in rapid change in seed zones—working hypotheses environment/climate

More extreme climate change, Revegetation with adapted tipping point reached populations within current species

Consider other native species, assisted translocation; draw from ex situ and in situ sources as needed Final thoughts: -Stay fluid: historical viewpoints are unlikely to work; we can conserve but probably not preserve today's vegetation -Collect key native species for ex situ conservation -Establish in situ sites and monitoring systems -Use genecology to understand plant adaptation and environment -Conduct follow-up adaptation studies in different climates to validate genecology models