Study on distinctness, uniformity and stability in traditional cultivars of Paeonia suffruticosa Andr.
By conducting a two-year open field observation, six qualitative binary characters, 21 qualitative polymorphic characters and eight quantitative characters of 34 traditional cultivars of Paeonia suffruticosa Andr were analyzed, in terms of their distinctness, uniformity and stability. The results showed that qualitative binary and qualitative polymorphic characters of al the cultivars displayed good uniformity, while there was a lack of uniformity in the quantitative characters due to the influence of environment factors. Most cultivars showed satisfying stability of their qualitative characters but the variation of quantitative characters was significant. Five qualitative binary characters and 19 qualitative polymorphic characters were screened for the comparison of cultivars distinctness and the analysis of genetic diversities.