CLONAL VARIATION OF GROWING AND MAHOGANY (Swietenia macrophylla King) CLONE SELECTION IN AN ASEXUAL SEED ORCHARD

Swietenia macrophylla King. (Mahogany) is a tropical tree of timber use which is classified as one of the principal economic and forest important native species in Latin-American. There are few works about germplasm of superior genetically trees. This germplasm source is very important to establish commercial forestry plantations. For this reason, the objective of this work was to select superior clones from an asexual seed orchard which was established in September 2014. The orchard was established under a randomized complete block experimental design in a royal frame of distance 4x4 m, in which 50 clones (ortet) with 49 replicates (ramet) were cultured obtaining 2,450 ramets in total. Variables evaluated were total height, clean stem height, normal diameter and crown diameter. It was carried out a principal components analysis and an analysis of variance (ANOVA). Furthermore, a test of comparison of means using the Tukey test at 5% of probability level (p≤0.05) and a conglomerate analysis was carried out. From 50 clones, it was identified 16 genetically superior materials: 1-CaLK149, 28-CaNB23; 23-CaNB48; 7-CaLK147; 20-CaNB14; 14-CaNB26; 25-CaNP132; 3-CaNP143; 9-CaB102; 24-CaLK147; 18-CaNB24; 19-CaNB19; 11-CaNB26; 13-CaNB21; 29-CaNB19; 21-CaNB26, these materials showed an average of 8.6±0.3 m of total height, 2.4±0.1 m of clean trunk height, 0.13±0.0 m of normal diameter and 4.3±0.2 m of tree crown diameter. Those clone groups identified as superior trees were recommended to continue in a forest breeding program.