Analysis of Growth and Site Interactions and Their Stability of 3-year-old Cyclobalanopsis gilva Families

Objective On the basis of best linear unbiased prediction (BLUP) and genotype main effect plus genotype-by-environment interaction (GGE) biplot analysis, the evaluation was conducted on the growth and stability of the 3-year-old elite families of Cyclobalanopsis gilva, as well as the discrimitiveness and representiveness of the test sites to provide theoretical basis for the selection and application of the superior family. Methods A complete investigation was conducted on the growth traits of 42 C. gilva elite families genetic assay forest across three sites in Jiande, Zhejiang Province, Anyuan and Fenyi, Jiangxi Province. BLUP values for tree height and ground diameter of the 3-year-old young forests were calculated in the different sites, and the correlation between the elite families and test sites was evaluated by GGE biplot. Results The GGE biplot analysis showed that there was a positive correlation among the three test sites for both tree height and ground diameter. When grouped by geographic region where sites located in, Anyuan’s and Fenyi’s were clustered into one group, Jiande’s was in the other group for tree height. Families HNCB6 and HNCB7 exhibited outstanding fast-growth performance, followed by HNSZ1, HNCB8, and HNHT5. Families with higher stability included FJJO2, FJJO11, HNCB7, HNCB8, and HNSZ1. For ground diameter, Jiande’s and Fenyi’s were classified into one group and Anyuan’s was in the other. Family HNSZ1 showed prominent fast-growth performance, followed by HNCB7, HNCB8 and FJJO1. Families with higher stability were FJJO19, FJJO5, and HNSZ1.The fast-growth performance and stability of C. gilva elite families varied across different test sites, indicating the significant interactive effect between the families and the sites. HNCB7 and HNCB8 were the families with both better fast-growth potential and stability in tree height, family HNSZ1 showed better fast-growth performance and stability in both tree height and ground diameter. Conclusion The Anyuan’s had the strongest discrimitiveness and the Fenyi’s had the best environmental representiveness. HNCB7, HNCB8 and HNSZ1 performed favorably among the 42 C. gilva elite families, demonstrating good genotypic adaptation to environments and thus possessing considerable value for selection and application.