'Banksia' species (Plate I) have been cultivated for the international cut flower market for only 20 to 30 years, but there is increasing interest in areas other than the native home, Australia, with production in Israel, South Africa, Hawaii, and California (Ben-Jaacov 1986; Sedgley 1996). Within Australia, 'Banksia' is one of the four most widely planted commercial native genera, but production is based on seedling material and between plant variability is high. 'Banksia' species for the fresh cut flower market must fulfill strict commercial criteria, which include terminal blooms and long stem length (Fig. 1.1), and further research is needed into all aspects of 'Banksia' biology and production. In addition to the fresh cut flower market, 'Banksia' stems are traded as dried and dyed blooms, and a wide range of species is used in environmental horticulture, for the attractive inflorescences and foliage, and to attract birds and other wildlife. Although there has been little work conducted so far on the use of banksias as pot plants, recent developments with related genera suggest that such an approach may be productive (Ben-Jaacov et al. 1989). 'Banksia' wood and cones are turned or incorporated into ornaments, and the timber of some species has been used for furniture.

The almond, ['Prunus dulcis' (Mill) D.A. Webb syn. 'P. amygdalus' Batsch] is an important nut crop belonging to the family Rosaceae. Almond consumption has shown steady growth during the last decades due to the increased awareness of its excellent flavour, nutritional value and health benefits. The Australian climate provides great potential for growing almonds and the Australian almond breeding program was initiated in 1997 to develop cultivars better suited to growing conditions and to meet market demands. The construction of a genetic linkage map for one of the breeding populations (Nonpareil x Lauranne) was a part of this breeding program. This population comprised 181 individuals, of which 93 were used for map construction and quantitative trait loci (QTL) analysis in this study. Important traits that were investigated included flowering time, flower structures in relation to fruit set and autogamy and shell and kernel traits.

The genus 'Eucalyptus' contains many species suitable for the floriculture and amenity horticulture industries in Australia. A development program has been underway at the University of Adelaide, with the aim of producing new and novel hybrid eucalypt varieties for these industries through controlled pollination between selected ornamental species. As each new hybrid plant reaches reproductive maturity, it is assessed for desirable characters and the very best plants selected for further development, including response to production systems and vegetative propagation. Plants that perform well in cultivation and can be propagated vegetatively will be registered with Plant Breeders Rights and made available through commercial nurseries.

The secondary metabolite amygdalin is a cyanogenic diglucoside that at high concentrations is associated with intense bitterness in seeds of the Rosaceae, including kernels of almond ('Prunus dulcis' (Mill.), syn. 'Prunus amygdalus' D.A. Webb Batsch). Amydalin is a glucoside of prunasin, itself a glucosider of 'R'-mandelonitrile (a cyanohydrin). Here we report the isolation of an almond enzyme (UGT85A19) that stereo-selectively gucosylates 'R'-mandelonitrile to produce prunasin. In a survey of developing kernels from seven bitter and 11 non-bitter genotypes with polyclonal antibody raised to UGT85A19, the enzyme was found to accumulate to higher levels in the bitter types in later development. This differential accumulation of UGT85A19 is associated with more than three-fold greater mandelonitrile glucosyltrajsferase activity in bitter kernels compared with non-bitter types, and transcriptional regulation was demonstrated using quantitative-PCR analysis. UGT85A19 and its encoding transcript were most concentrated in the testa (seed coat) of the kernel compared with the embryo, and prunasin and amygdalin were differentially compartmentalised in these tissues. Prunasin was confined to the testa and amygdalin was confined to the embryo. These results are consisted with the seed coat being an important site of synthesis of prunasin as a precursor of amygdalin accumulation in the kernel. The presence of UGT85A19 in the kernel and other tissues of both bitter and non-bitter types indicates that its expression is unlikely to be a control point for amygdalin accumulation and suggests additional roles for the enzyme in almond metabolism.

Developed recently, high resolution melting (HRM) analysis is an efficient, accurate and inexpensive method for distinguishing DNA polymorphisms. HRM has been used to identify mutations in human genes, and to detect SNPs, INDELs and microsatellites in plants. However, its capacity to discriminate DNA variants in the context of complex haplotypes involving INDEL as well as SNP variants has not been examined until now. In this study, we genotyped an almond (Prunus dulcis (Mill.) D. A. Webb, syn. Prunus amygdalus Batsch) pseudotestcross mapping population that showed segregation of complex haplotypes associated with CYP79D16 promoter sequence. The 175 bp region in question included a 7 bp INDEL and 3 SNPs, and manifested as three different haplotypes in the parents. Thus, with one homozygous and one heterozygous parent, two relevant genotypes were identified in the mapping population. Although the population displayed monomorphism with respect to the INDEL and one of the SNPs, HRM was sufficiently sensitive to distinguish genotypes on the basis of the two informative SNPs, and the resulting data were used to map CYP79D16 to linkage group 6 of the almond genome. Thus the capacity of HRM to resolve genotypes arising from complex haplotypes has been demonstrated, and this has important implications for the design of efficient HRM markers for various genetic applications including mapping, population studies and biodiversity analyses.

Micropropagation via enhanced axillary shoot proliferation was investigated in the ornamental Eucalyptus cv. 'Urrbrae Gem' using in vitro germinated seedlings and was successfully achieved using woody plant medium (WPM) supplemented with 2.2 μM benzylaminopurine, 1.0 μM α-naphthaleneacetic acid, and 1.5 μM gibberellic acid (GA₃), gelled with 5 g l−1 Phytagel®. Shoot proliferation was greater on WPM and QL media with GA3 compared to B5, AP, and TK media with or without GA3. GA3 was required for shoot elongation as the internodes were otherwise very short and unsuitable for multiplication or root initiation. Root initiation was improved using (1/2) WPM supplemented with 20 μM indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) over a 7 d pulse, followed by subculture to IBA-free medium, compared to placing shoots on low levels of IBA for 4–6 wk. Plantlets were successfully hardened off to the natural environment via a fogger at 67% relative, humidity at 21°C for 3 d and continued to thrive as potted plants. This is the first report of successful, micropropagation in an ornamental eucalypt (subgenus Symphyomyrtus) from seedling explants.

Organogenesis and somatic embryogenesis were investigated in apex and cotyledon explants of 'Eucalyptus erythronema, E. strick landii' and their inter-specific hybrids 'Eucalyptus erythronema' X E. 'stricklandii cv'. 'Urrbrae Gem' and 'Hybrid 2.5', following exposure to 1 mg 1-¹ naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) plus 1 mg 1-¹ 2,4dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-0), or 3, 5 or 15 mg 1-¹ NAA alone. Somatic embryogenesis was not observed macroscopically; however, structures characteristic of globular somatic embryos or root primordia were observed using light microscopy of apex explants of 'Urrbrae Gem' seedlings after 14 d on Murashige and Skoog (1962) (MS) medium supplemented with 3 mg 1-¹ NAA. Root development was associated with explant vascular tissue and observed in all plant growth regulator (PGR) treatments, but was less on explants treated with 1 mg 1-¹ NAA plus 1 mg 1-¹ 2,4-0 than in all NAA-alone treatments. Shoot development was observed on apex explants after sub-culture on PGR-free medium, but was less after treatment with 1 mg 1-¹ NAA plus 1 mg 1-¹ 2,4-0 compared to all NAA-on1y treatments. Roots and sho ts developed simultaneously on apex explants after culture for 1 week on MS medium supplemented with 15 mg 1-¹NAA.

The ongoing eucalypt development programme at the University of Adelaide has produced many hundreds of interspecific eucalypt hybrids suitable for ornamental horticulture. A two-phase selection process was developed to streamline selection; from this process, twelve superior hybrids have been identified for further work, including propagation and production trials. This paper will report on progress towards commercial release.

Almond ('Prunus dulcis') is the only nut crop of the Rosaceae. As one of the earliest species to bloom in spring, almond trees can experience severe crop loss due to late frosts and unfavourable climatic conditions. The Australian almond breeding program is one of the world's major almond breeding programs and has developed a genetic linkage map. One of the objectives of the project is to investigate the inheritance of flowering time. The flowering time of a 'Nonpareil' × 'Lauranne' population was evaluated for two years. The proportion of buds and flowers at seven stages of bud and flower development were recorded for each tree using the same procedures in each of two years. A proportional odds logistic model was used to analyse the data, considering the timing of development of buds and flowers as a latent variable that was estimated for each tree on each occasion recorded. These estimates of flower timing were then used in QTL analysis of flowering time. The goal of this project is to identify genetic markers useful in breeding for altered flowering time in almond.

In 1999, we presented our work at XI GREMPA on conservation of almond (Prunus dulcis) germplasm by cryopreservation of almond shoot tips. "Nonpareil", "Ne Plus Ultra" and an almond-peach hybrid rootstock, Prunus dulcis "Titan" x P. persica "Nemaguard" were successfully cryopreserved for 6 months using a one-step vitrification technique. That work has since been extended to test for plant viability and genetic integrity after storage under liquid nitrogen for up to 2 years. Mean survival of shoot tips was 80% for "Ne Plus Ultra", 54% for "Nonpareil", and 78% for the hybrid rootstock, and there were no significant differences in survival between 3 days and 2 years. Genetic stability was tested by comparing DNA from the original trees, with leaves regrown from tissue culture, and from leaves regrown from cryopreserved shoot tips. Some changes in the structure and methylation of the DNA were found that were probably related to the in vitro culture process. These changes may have affected agronomic performance. Fruit and kernel characteristics have been monitored and compared to authentic non-preserved cultivars.