Inheritance of Pink Flower in Soybean

Abstract

In soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.], there are several possible flower colors: white, near‐white, purple, purple‐throat, and magenta. We report a new flower color, described as pink, which is distinct from all previously reported flower colors. Segregation ratios for the progeny row in which the mutant was found, and subsequent selfed progeny, indicate that the pink flower color is controlled by a single recessive gene. When this pink‐flowered plant was crossed with all reported flower color genes and the F2 populations classified for flower color, results indicate that the pink flower gene is independent of known flower color genes and acts as a modifier gene to decrease pigment expression at the W1 locus. We propose the gene symbol wp to be used to describe pink flower color inheritance.