GENETIC-VARIATION WITHIN WHITE CLOVER (TRIFOLIUM-REPENS L) POPULATIONS FROM NORTH-CENTRAL VICTORIA

A collection of regional white clover (Trifolium repens L.) population s in north-central Victoria was made from 42 farms sown to cv. Irrigat ion 20-55 years ago. The collection was evaluated for characters known to be associated with productivity and persistence, with the objectiv es of assessing the extent of genotypic variation within the collectio n and determining its suitability for a long-term population improveme nt program for Victoria. Some regional populations of cv. Irrigation h ave reduced leaf and stolon sizes compared with recently sown and comm ercial seed farm populations. In a broad-based population derived from this collection, genetic variances and broad sense heritability estim ates were high for leaf length and width, and for stolon length, chara cters related to productivity and persistence. These populations of cv . Irrigation may form the basis of a population improvement pro-ram to develop more productive, persistent cultivars for Victoria.