A genetic linkage map ofPhysocarpus, a member of the Spiraeoideae (Rosaceae), based on RAPD, AFLP, RGA, SSR and gene specific markers

Physocarpus opulifolius is a deciduous shrub native to North America belonging to the Spiraeoideae subfamily of the Rosaceae. The cultivars 'Luteus' and 'Diabolo' are grown in gardens for their ornamental foliage, golden and purple respectively. We developed a linkage map of P. opulifolius with a view to detecting markers for the leaf colour genes, which are under major gene control. A total of 162 molecular markers (128 RAPDs, 27 AFLPs, three RGA, three STS markers and one SSR) and the leaf colour genes Pur and Aur were scored in the Physocarpus progeny and used to create a linkage map covering 586.1 cM over nine linkage groups. There was an average of 18.2 markers per linkage group and a …