| Research Abstract |
Chromosome information is an important key for taxonomy, phylogeny and the breeding in cultivated plants. The genus Prunus worldwide is known to have a variety of chromosome counts of 2n=16, 17, 18, 19, 24, 25, 32, 34, 36, 40, 48, 64, 144, and so on (Fedorov 1969).
Chromosome counts were made from somatic cells undergoing mitosis in the meristems of leaf buds collected mainly from the plants preserved in the Matsumae Cherry Blossoms Garden in Hokkaido, the Arboretum of Ishikawa Forest Experiment Station in Ishikawa Prefecture, the Tama Forest Science Garden at Hachioji in Tokyo Metropolis, and The Yuki Experimental Station of the Flowering Association of Japan in Ibaraki Prefecture. In the 384 taxa studied, 315 taxa were diploid (82%), 65 taxa were triploid (16.9%), and four taxa were tetraploid (1.0%).
The groups of cv Mazakura and its related taxa (Amayadori, Ariake, Botan, Daimin, O-jochin, Koma-tsunagi, Shirotae, Senriko, Tai-haku, Mangetsu and Washi-no-o), cv Shirayuki and its related taxa (Usu-zumi, Okina-zakura and Kariginu), and cv Takasago and its related taxa (Aya-nishiki, Beni-yutaka and Matsumae-haya-zaki) are all triploids, while the other groups were all diploids or had a small minority of triploid cultivars.
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