Cedrela odorata L. ("Spanish Cedar"; Meliaceae)is a valuable timber tree native to central and Southern America (LAMP 1968; PENNINGTON 1981) often grown in combination with coffee or cocoa in agroforestry systems. However attempts to establish the species in plantations in areas within its natural range have met with repeated failurelargely because of attack by shoot boring moth larvae (Hypsipyla spp).(NEWTON et al.1993a). Shoot borers destroy the terminal shoot resulting in a highly branched or forked tree of little economic worth (GRIJPMA 1976; NEWTON et al.1993a). Evidence from performance and progeny test of C.odorata indicate that some gynotypes may display tolerance of the pest (GRIJPMA 1976; NEWTON et al 1993b) by displaying strong apical growth of the leading shoot after attack (CHAPLIN 1980;VEGA1976). Although such a characteristic is clearly of great potential valuethe physiological and genetic basis of this pattern of response is not well understood.
Publication year
1995
Authors
Newton, A.C.; Cornelius, J.P.; Mesén, J.F.; Leakey, R.R.B.
Keywords
Seedlings, Agroforestry systems, Plantations, Progeny
