A model for the determination of the variance in genetic relationship among offspring from open-pollinated plant populations

Abstract

Continuing a study of the average coefficient of kinship and inbreeding among offspring from specified mother plants belonging to a population of monoecious, diploid seed-plants, the variances of these coefficients have been computed. The variance in kinship was considered among offspring from a single mother plant and between offspring from two different mother plants. Special interest has been paid to the role played by the rate of self-fertilization and the effective size of neighbourhood and common neighbourhood. The graphical representation of some numerical examples indicates that it is impossible to predict general tendencies which hold true for the behaviour of all three types of variance if they are regarded as functions of the rate of self-fertilization; only the coefficient of inbreeding and kinship among offspring from the same parent showed similar tendencies. The influence of the effective size of neighbourhood and common neighbourhood on the respective variances proved to be of minor importance.