Phenotypes are plants that exhibit different traits that are shown because of genetics, or environmental influences, within a particular cultivar. I am mostly however referring to those caused by genetics, that are unchanged by the environment.
I was just wondering about the amount of phenotypes within particular cultivars, and maybe discussing them here. I have heard of different phenotypes that exhibit specific traits, such as a more cold hardiness, maybe a deeper color, or an added color, larger or smaller sized mature culms, amongst just a couple examples of this. These particular types when cloned produce an exact copy of the parent plant, thus preserving the particular pheno.
I believe this info is of great importance, not only for the consumer and collector, but for the general preservation of particular types. Some are much more desirable than others based apon certain traits.(example: the P. nigra phenotype that blackens up almost immediately, as opposed to the normal one that takes much longer.)
I am sure that this has been touched on a little, but much is unknown about each cultivar; as too how many phenos are known. In most instances the differences are subtle; but that is not always the case. Different phenos are discovered usually by germination of many seeds from a cultivar. Clones are then made from a discovery of desirable traits, from a seedlings that have matured and thus revealed their differences.

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Aaron

Examples of discovered phenotypes in a species:
In no particular order
1) B. multiplex
2) D. asper
3) B. chungii
4) D giganteus
5) B. emeiensis
6) B. pervariabilis
7) B. textilis
B. tulda
9) B. tuldoides
10) B. vulgaris
11) D. latifloris
12) A. gigantea
13) G. pseudoarundinacia
14) G. angustifolia
15) P. nigra
16) C. marmorea
17) C. culeou
18) P. aurea

Some suspected phenos not yet identified

1) D. strictus- larger, or smaller forms, etc.
2) B. lako- more solid black culms verses ones with more blue/purple in them etc
3) B. oldhamii ?? possibly 'hirose' that is just the same, but with thicker walled culms, more oval?? I am sure someone with more knowledge could comment on this one. Just because it has thicker walled culms does not make it something else. Could be a desirable trait expression.

Only a couple I could come up with off the top of my head.

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Aaron

Humans have roughly 33000 genes....so bamboos, although they look different, cant be too many thousands off.

Phenotypes of wall size, color and growth are probably not just determined by a few genes. Human hair for example is controled by more than 6 genes. depending on how many dominat blone/brown/black hair traits you have, they all blend together to make that one color.

Bamboo phenotypes would me much easier to discover if bamboo flowered and we could cross-pollunate with the species it self. This way we could get "pure" black "pure" purple or any other color.

G. Mendel of Austria did this with his famous pea plant study. By crossing he was able to isolate the gene with made the pea pods wrinkle or smooth. He was only dealing with 1 gene....with bamboo we might have to deal with hundreds, if not thousands.


I think there is potential in isolating phenotypes from individual species... It would help to name them as well. Well....as long as the names would help.

-eastlandia

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Brian T. Lawrence
Southern Indiana (2002-2011)
Fort Myers Florida (2012)

Eastlandia, I agree. It must be quite difficult for a scientist to work with bamboo, considering it flowering times. I think that is part of the attraction of bamboo for me, being that alot is largely unknown, unlike most of the plants on earth. Its still in the discovery phase, although some have paved the way considerably.

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Aaron

Absolutly. We're going over phenotypes in our science class right now. The same questions came to me while i was in it.
Hopefully we can find some way with tissue culture or implanting viral genetics to stress/alter the genes of bamboo cells...

maybe thats pushing it... i would wait until it flowers..haha -eastlandia

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Brian T. Lawrence
Southern Indiana (2002-2011)
Fort Myers Florida (2012)

It seems that some terms have become a bit confused in this thread. Maybe this will help:

Phenotype vs Genotype

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Joseph Clemens
Tucson, Arizona, USA