THE BREEDING SYSTEMS OF 3 ANNUAL CLOVERS NATIVE TO NORTH SYRIA

The breeding systems of three clovers (Trifolium stellatum, T. tomento sum, and T. campestre) were studied by measuring (a) seed production u nder forced selfing and crossing, and (b) morphological variation betw een and within families derived from seeds collected in the field. The results indicate that all three species are both self- and cross-comp atible. However, since morphological variation within families was sma ll compared with variation between families, the three species seem to be predominantly inbreeding in the field. This is confirmed by the fa ct that field populations are genetically heterogeneous and composed o f mainly homozygous individuals.