Multi-trait evaluation identifies superior Dendrocalamus latiflorus germplasm for sustainable bamboo plantation development.

Multi-trait evaluation identifies Lianjiang, Fuqing, and Yong'an as superior Dendrocalamus latiflorus germplasm for high productivity and sustainable bamboo cultivation.

• Why it matters: Understanding provenance-dependent growth variation in D. latiflorus is crucial for optimizing bamboo plantation productivity and sustainability, yet its physiological and molecular mechanisms remain unclear.
• What they did: Eighteen provenances were assessed over two growing seasons using growth, morphological, photosynthetic, nutrient, biochemical, multivariate, and transcriptomic analyses, with principal component analysis and an integrated selection index.
• The result: Lianjiang, Fuqing, and Yong'an were identified as superior germplasm resources, with differential regulation of carbon fixation and energy metabolism pathways suggesting provenance-specific molecular mechanisms underlying high productivity.