GENETIC-VARIATION IN ORNAMENTAL APPLE-TREES AND THEIR SEEDLINGS (MALUS, ROSACEAE) REVEALED BY DNA FINGERPRINTING WITH THE M13 REPEAT PROBE

DNA samples from 23 ornamental apple trees as well as from 55 seedling offspring were separately digested with restriction enzymes and Southern blot hybridized to the minisatellite M13 repeat probe. The apple trees yielded 8 or 10 different fragment patterns depending on the enzyme utilized, whereas each seedling exhibited a unique pattern. Genetic diversity, as estimated by applying a similarity index to the fragment patterns, appears to be associated with known levels of genetic relatedness. Paternity could be tentatively suggested for 21 of the seedlings investigated.