An investigation of large-leaved Gunnera L. (Gunneraceae) grown outside in Britain and Ireland

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24823/Sibbaldia.2022.1998

Keywords:

Britain and Ireland, cultivated large-leaved Gunnera, CYC-like, Gunnera × cryptica, heterozygosity, hybrid, invasive

Abstract

A molecular investigation of large-leaved Gunnera growing outside in Britain and Ireland was conducted. Two low-copy nuclear CYCLOIDEA-like genes (CYC-like 1 and CYC-like 2) and two chloroplast DNA regions (matK and psbD-trnT) were sequenced for 271 samples of Gunnera. While it was confirmed that genuine G. tinctoria is growing both in cultivation and in the wild, the results support recently published morphological and historical findings that the species G. manicata appears no longer to be present in Britain and Ireland. Instead, the plant under this name is G. × cryptica, a hybrid between G. manicata and G. tinctoria. The implication of this discovery for legislation on invasive non-native species where G. manicata and G. tinctoria are listed is explored.

References

AKTAS, C. (2015). R package haplotypes: haplotype inference and statistical analysis of genetic variation (software). Available online: https://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/haplotypes/haplotypes.pdf (accessed March 2023).

ARMITAGE, J. & PHILLIPS, B. (2011). A hybrid swamp lantern. The Plantsman, n.s., 10(3): 155–157.

BURBIDGE, F.W.T. (1905). Gunnera. Flora and Sylva, 3: 293–295.

CHAPMAN, M.A., LEEBENS-MACK, J.H. & BURKE, J.M. (2008). Positive selection and expression divergence following gene duplication in the sunflower CYCLOIDEA gene family. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 25(7): 1260–1273. doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msn001

CITERNE, H.L. (2006). A primer set for specific amplification of two CYCLOIDEA-like genes in the genistoid clade of Leguminosae subfam. Papilionoideae. Edinburgh Journal of Botany, 62(3): 119–126. doi: https://doi.org/:10.1017/S0960428606000126

CITERNE, H.L., LE GUILLOUX, M., SANNIER, J., NADOT, S. & DAMERVAL, C. (2013). Combining phylogenetic and syntenic analyses for understanding the evolution of TCP ECE genes in eudicots. PLoS ONE, 8(9): e74803. doi: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0074803

CITERNE, H.L., MÖLLER, M. & CRONK, Q.C.B. (2000). Diversity of CYCLOIDEA-like genes in Gesneriaceae in relation to floral symmetry. Annals of Botany, 86(1): 167–176. doi: https://doi.org/10.1006/anbo.2000.1178

CITERNE, H.L., REYES, E., LE GUILLOUX, M., DELANNOY, E., SIMONNET, F., SAUQUET, H., WESTON, P.H., NADOT, S. & DAMERVAL, C. (2017). Characterization of CYCLOIDEA-like genes in Proteaceae, a basal eudicot family with multiple shifts in floral symmetry. Annals of Botany, 119(3): 367–378. doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcw219

CLEMENT, E.J. (2003). What is Gunnera manicata? – and whence?. BSBI News, 93: 52–55.

CORNISH-BOWDEN, A. (1985). Nomenclature for incompletely specified bases in nucleic acid sequences: recommendations 1984. Nucleic Acids Research, 13(9): 3021–3030. doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/nar/13.9.3021

DAMERVAL, C., LE GUILLOUX, M., JAGER, M. & CHARON, C. (2007). Diversity and evolution of CYCLOIDEA-like TCP genes in relation to flower development in Papaveraceae. Plant Physiology, 143(2): 759–772. doi: https://doi.org/10.1104/pp.106.090324

DINES, T.D. & DEHNEN-SCHMUTZ, K. (2023a). Gunnera tinctoria (Molina) Mirb. In: STROH, P.A., HUMPHREY, T.A., BURKMAR, R.J., PESCOTT, O.L., ROY, D.B. & WALKER, K.J. (eds), BSBI Online Plant Atlas 2020. Available online: https://plantatlas2020.org/atlas/2cd4p9h.fbw (accessed March 2023).

DINES, T.D. & DEHNEN-SCHMUTZ, K. (2023b). Gunnera manicata Linden ex André In: STROH, P.A., HUMPHREY, T.A., BURKMAR, R.J., PESCOTT, O.L., ROY, D.B. & WALKER, K.J. (eds), BSBI Online Plant Atlas 2020. Available online: https://plantatlas2020.org/atlas/2cd4p9h.xm5 (accessed March 2023).

EDGAR, R.C. (2004). MUSCLE: multiple sequence alignment with high accuracy and high throughput. Nucleic Acids Research, 32(5): 1792–1797. doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/nar/gkh340

EDWARDS, D., GRIFFIN, J.H.C. & ARMITAGE, J.D. (2015). A molecular and morphological investigation into the origins of Ligustrum × vicaryi (Oleaceae) with consideration of its nomenclature. New Journal of Botany, 5: 101–118. doi: https://doi.org/10.1179/2042349715Y.0000000008

ELWES, H.J. & STAPF, O. (1919). Gunnera chilensis and G. manicata. The Gardeners’ Chronicle, ser. 3, 66: 210.

FORD, C.S., AYRES, K.L., TOOMEY, N., HAIDER, N., VAN ALPHEN STAHL, J., KELLY, L.J., WIKSTRÖM, N., HOLLINGSWORTH, P.M., DUFF, R.J., HOOT, S.B., COWAN, R.S., CHASE, M.W. & WILKINSON, M.J. (2009). Selection of candidate coding DNA barcoding regions for use on land plants. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 159(1): 1–11. doi: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1095-8339.2008.00938.x

FRENCH, C.N. (2020). A Flora of Cornwall. Wheal Seaton Press, Camborne.

GIORIA, M. & OSBORNE, B.A. (2013). Biological Flora of the British Isles: Gunnera tinctoria. Journal of Ecology, 101(1): 243–264. doi: https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12022

GOLDRING, W. (1879). The Gunneras. The Garden, 16: 412–414.

GONZÁLEZ, F. & BELLO, M.A. (2009). Intra-individual variation of flowers in Gunnera subgenus Panke (Gunneraceae) and proposed apomorphies for Gunnerales. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 160(3): 262–283. doi: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1095-8339.2009.00974.x

GRANT, M. (2004). Identifying Gunnera in the British Isles. BSBI News, 96: 51–52.

HASSEMER, G. (2020). Gunneraceae. In: Flora do Brasil 2020. Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro. Available online: https://floradobrasil2020.jbrj.gov.br/reflora/floradobrasil/FB123 (accessed February 2023).

HOLLINGSWORTH, P.M., GRAHAM, S.W. & LITTLE, D.P. (2011). Choosing and using a plant DNA barcode. PLoS ONE, 6 (5): e19254. doi: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0019254

HOWARTH, D.G., MARTINS, T., CHIMNEY, E. & DONOGHUE, M.J. (2011). Diversification of CYCLOIDEA expression in the evolution of bilateral flower symmetry in Caprifoliaceae and Lonicera (Dipsacales). Annals of Botany, 107(9): 1521–1532. doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcr049

JOHOW, F. (1896). Estudios sobre la flora de las Islas de Juan Fernández. s.n., Santiago.

JONGKINDT-CONINCK, A.M.C. (1873). Gunnera scabra and manicata at M. L. van Houtte’s, Ghent, Belgium. The Gardeners’ Chronicle, 2: 44.

KÖNYVES, K. (2014). Taxonomy to underpin cultivar identification in hoop-petticoat daffodils. Unpublished PhD thesis, University of Reading.

MCCLINTOCK, D. (1975). Gunnera in the British Isles. Watsonia, 10: 467–468.

MCMILLAN BROWSE, P. (2007). Heligan Survivors: An Introduction to Some of the Historic Plant Stock Discovered in the Lost Gardens of Heligan. Alison Hodge Publishers, Saint Day.

MORA-OSEJO, L.E. (1984). Flora de Colombia 3. Haloragaceae. Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogota.

MORA-OSEJO, L.E., PABÓN-MORA, N. & GONZÁLEZ, F. (2011). Gunneraceae. Flora Neotropica Monograph 109. The New York Botanical Garden Press, New York.

NATIONAL BIODIVERSITY DATA CENTRE (2010). Gunnera species ID. Available online: www.biodiversityireland.ie/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/Gunnera-ID.pdf (accessed December 2022).

NELSON, E.C. (1986). Gunnera – as I understand it! Unpublished notes.

NELSON, E.C. & GRILLS, A. (1998). Daisy Hill Nursery, Newry. A History of ‘the Most Interesting Nursery Probably in the World’. Northern Ireland Heritage Gardens Committee, Belfast.

NIETO FELINER, G. & ROSSELLÓ, J.A. (2007). Better the devil you know? Guidelines for insightful utilization of nrDNA ITS in species-level evolutionary studies in plants. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 44(2): 911–919. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2007.01.013

O’ROURKE, E. & O’FLYNN, C. (2014). Risk assessment of Gunnera manicata. Inland Fisheries Ireland and the National Biodiversity Data Centre. Available online: http://nonnativespecies.ie/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Gunnera-manicata-Brazilian-Giant-rhubarb.pdf (accessed February 2023).

OSBORNE, B., DORIS, F., CULLEN, A., MCDONALD, R., CAMPBELL, G. & STEER, M. (1991). Gunnera tinctoria: an unusual nitrogen-fixing invader: this water-loving species may offer insights into the development of terrestrial plants. Bioscience, 41(4): 224–234. doi: https://doi.org/10.2307/1311412

PACHECO, P., STUESSY, T.F. & CRAWFORD, D.J. (1991). Natural interspecific hybridization in Gunnera (Gunneraceae) of the Juan Fernández Islands. Pacific Science, 45(4): 389–399.

PALKOVIC, L.A. (1978). A hybrid of Gunnera from Costa Rica. Systematic Botany, 3(2): 226–235. doi: https://doi.org/10.2307/2418316

R DEVELOPMENT CORE TEAM (2016). R: a language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria (software). Available online: www.R-project.org (accessed March 2023).

RICHES, C. (2008). Gunnera tinctoria (giant rhubarb) datasheet. CABI compendium. Available online: www.cabidigitallibrary.org/doi/10.1079/cabicompendium.107826 (accessed December 2022).

SCHEEN, A.C., PFEIL, B.E., PETRI, A., HEIDARI, N., NYLINDER, S. & OXELMAN, B. (2012). Use of allele-specific sequencing primers is an efficient alternative to PCR subcloning of low-copy nuclear genes. Molecular Ecology Resources, 12(1): 128–135. doi: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1755-0998.2011.03070.x

SHAW, J., LICKEY, E.B., SCHILLING, E.E. & SMALL, R.L. (2007). Comparison of whole chloroplast genome sequences to choose noncoding regions for phylogenetic studies in angiosperms: the tortoise and the hare III. American Journal of Botany, 94(3): 275–288. doi: https://doi.org/10.3732/ajb.94.3.275

SHAW, J.M.H., EDWARDS, D. & DAVID, J. (2022). A new spontaneous hybrid in Gunnera subgenus Panke (Gunneraceae) widespread in the British Isles, with notes on the typification of G. manicata. British & Irish Botany, 4(3): 364–384. doi: https://doi.org10.33928/bib.2022.04.364

SHEEHY SKEFFINGTON, M. & HALL, K. (2011). The ecology, distribution and invasiveness of Gunnera L. species in Connemara, western Ireland. Biology and Environment, 111B(3): 157–175. doi: https://doi.org/10.3318/BIOE.2011.13

SILVA, L., TAVARES, J. & PENA, A. (1996). Ecological basis for the control of Gunnera tinctoria in São Miguel Island. In: BROWN, H., CUSSANS, G.W., DEVINE, M.D., DUKE, S.O., FERNANDEZ-QUINTANILLA, C., HELWEG, A., LABRADA, R.E., LANDES, M., KUDSK, P. & STREI, J.C. (eds), Proceedings of the Second International Weed Control Congress Copenhagen, Denmark. Department of Weed Control and Pesticide Ecology, Flakkebjerg, pp. 233–239.

SIMMONS, H. & OCHOTERENA, M.P. (2000). Gaps as characters in sequence-based phylogenetic analyses. Systematic Biology, 49(2): 369–381. doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/sysbio/49.2.369

SKOTTSBERG, C. (1922). The phanerogams of the Juan Fernandez Islands. In: The Natural History of Juan Fernandez and Easter Island, vol. 2, pt 2, pp. 95–240. doi: https://doi.org/10.5962/bhl.title.54180

SMITH, J.F., HILEMAN, L.C., POWELL, M.P. & BAUM, D.A. (2004). Evolution of GCYC, a Gesneriaceae homolog of CYCLOIDEA, within Gesnerioideae (Gesneriaceae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 31: 765–779. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2003.09.012

SMITH, T. (1904). Catalogue no 56. Daisy Hill Nursery, Newry, p. 97.

STACE, C.A. (2010). New Flora of the British Isles. 3rd edn. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

STACE, C.A. (2019). New Flora of the British Isles. 4th edn. C&M Floristics, Middlewood Green.

STACE, C.A., PRESTON, C.D. & PEARMAN, D.A. (2015). Hybrid Flora of the British Isles. Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland, Bristol.

TALLACK, J.C. (1894). Gunnera manicata. The Garden, 45: 85–86.

THIERS, B. (2023). Index Herbariorum. Available online: https://sweetgum.nybg.org/science/ih/ (accessed May 2023).

VAN HOUTTE, L. (1870). Gunnera chilensis Lam. Flore des serres et des jardins de l’Europe, 18: 119–120.

VAN VALKENBURG, J.L.C.H., OSBORNE, B.A. & WESTENBERG, M. (2023). The large Gunnera’s (G. tinctoria and G. manicata) in Europe in relation to EU regulation 1143/2014. PLoS ONE, 18(4): e0284665. doi: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0284665

WANNTORP, L., WANNTORP, H-E. & KÄLLERSJÖ, M. (2002). Phylogenetic relationships of Gunnera based on nuclear ribosomal DNA ITS region, rbcL and rps16 intron sequences. Systematic Botany, 27(3): 512–521. doi: https://doi.org/10.1043/0363-6445-27.3.512

WILLIAMS, P.A., OGLE, C.C., TIMMINS, S.M., LA COCK, G.D. & CLARKSON, J. (2005). Chilean Rhubarb (Gunnera tinctoria): Biology, Ecology and Conservation Impacts in New Zealand. Department of Conservation, Wellington.

Gunnera x cryptica

Downloads

Published

2023-12-07

How to Cite

Edwards, D., Armitage, J., Bilsborrow, J., David, J., Gebauer, M., Hassemer, G., … Könyves, K. (2023). An investigation of large-leaved Gunnera L. (Gunneraceae) grown outside in Britain and Ireland. Sibbaldia: The International Journal of Botanic Garden Horticulture, (22). https://doi.org/10.24823/Sibbaldia.2022.1998