Flying dragon seedlings comparison

[poncirusguy]

I planted a bunch of Flying dragon seeds and 1/3 seedlings look like flying dragon and 2/3 look like Poncirus trifoliata.  Can I assume that the PT looking seedlings will grow like true PT seedlings and the grafted kumquat trees on those seedlings will grow as if they were grafted to true PT seedlings  instead of those grafted to Flying dragon seedlings that look like FD Seedlings.

[jibro]

You can check this study: journals.ashs.org/jashs/view/journals/jashs/120/2/article-p286.xml

All ‘Flying Dragon’ progeny with curved thorns and trunks produced dwarf trees when used as rootstocks.

Of the eleven progeny with straight thorns and trunks, seven were clearly nondwarfing as rootstocks, three produced trees slightly smaller than the largest trees on progeny with curved thorns, and one produced a very small tree.

Trees on straight-thorned rootstocks were significantly larger than those on curved-thorned rootstocks,
and the latter were similar in size to trees on nucellar ‘Flying Dragon’ rootstocks

[millet]

Flying Dragon as a cultivar always has zigzag stems and strongly curved thorns, it is an easy way (without a DNA test) of selecting predominately true clonal FD seedlings. Discard those which are obviously and definitely genetically different.  The straight stemmed and straight thorn are not FD.   50 to 60 percent of seeds produced by FD are FD true to type.  The true seeds produce curved thorns, twisted stems, and have smaller leaves than non-nucellar seedlings.

[Sylvain]

In fact it is not so simple but you can consider that all the FD looking are FD and all the PT looking are PT.

2/3 look like Poncirus trifoliata

The rate is not usually so high but in small sample it can happen.

[pagnr]

You could grade the The PT type flying dragon by size/vigour. The larger faster growers will be more like trifoliata. The smaller slower PT type will be more like FD, i.e. dwarfing.
You will get vigorous PT type seedlings and slower PT type seedlings, so not all the straight stem straight thorn FD off type seedlings will be equal to regular trifoliata.
You can also get some off types with FD characters, i.e. vigorous growers with zig zag stems and curved thorns.
If you grow enough FD seedlings, you will get some further unusual types, based on leaf and bark characters.

[Sylvain]

Welcome back!