Intra- and Inter-Cultivar Variability of Lavandin (Lavandula × intermedia Emeric ex Loisel.) Landraces from the Island of Hvar, Croatia

Abstract

Lavandin (Lavandula × intermedia Emeric ex Loisel.) was brought to the Island of Hvar (Croatia) in the 1920s, coinciding with the beginning of large-scale cultivation of lavandin in France. Although the cultivation of lavandin and the production of essential oils are of great importance worldwide, the genetic diversity of lavandin has been little studied. We performed an AFLP-based genetic analysis that included the landraces ‘Bila’ and ‘Budrovka’ and two lavandin cultivars from France ‘Grosso’ and ‘Abrialis’, as well as the parental species of the hybrid (L. angustifolia and L. latifolia). Distance-based cluster analysis revealed the existence of the third landrace, named ‘Budrovka Sveti Nikola’. This result was confirmed by the model-based cluster analyses implemented in STRUCTURE and BAPS, where the optimal number of clusters was three. ‘Budrovka’ clearly separated from all other samples, while ‘Bila’ and ‘Budrovka Sveti Nikola’ showed some degree of admixture, indicating ancestral polyclonality. The landrace ‘Bila’ showed higher polymorphism than ‘Budrovka’ and ‘Budrovka Sveti Nikola’. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) showed that genetic diversity (56.63%) was higher within landraces than among (43.37%). This research will provide a basis for conservation of the Island landraces and will help in the establishment of a high-quality regional brand.