Arbour Technologies Pty Ltd has perfected the laboratory application of a naturally occurring evolutionary event, i.e. the ability to consistently create stable polyploids (plants with duplicate sets of chromosomes), allowing accelerated plant growth. The Tree Adaptation Process creates polyploids at will, however the groundbreaking part of this process is the ability to create adaptive polyploids, where entire gene clusters are rearranged in order to cope with specific environmental and physical conditions (genomic architecture).

Toona ciliata comparison
Parent (small) and
Adapted Tree (large)

The process involves the DNA profiling of elite mother stock trees and processing them through the Tree Adaptation Process. The end result is a new plant with the same physical characteristics yet significantly greater genetic material and therefore, growth potential than its mother stock. The new child stock is significantly different on a number of levels and has the potential to be protected under the plant breeder's rights scheme.

Paulownia Shoot Tip Culture

The Tree Adaptation Process has now been completed for the following species: acacia crassicarpa, elaeocarpus grandis, paulownia fortunei, araucaria cunninghamii, pinus radiata, agathis robusta and toona ciliata. Arbour Technologies is currently working on the modification of biofuel plants for the biodiesel industry.

For more information on the above processes go to www.arbourtech.net. Arbour Technologies Pty Ltd, a related corporation, holds the Exclusive Worldwide Processing License for the polyploid technologies.

Polyploidy

Polyploidy as defined by Wikipedia: are "cells or organisms that contain more than two copies of their chromosomes".

A naturally occurring phenomenon, polyploidy generally occurs in pioneer plant species during times of environmental stress. Polyploids are found in most of our food crops, however due to the long reproductive cycle of tree crops natural polyploids are extremely rare.

Polyploids contain more chlorophyll, photosynthesise at a faster rate and therefore grow faster than conventional plants.

Much scientific work has been conducted to produce polyploid events, however to date, few polyploid events have resulted in "stable plants" (that is, they created the polyploid event using mutagens but the plants did not thrive). One of the best known and most commercially successful polyploid events was the creation of the seedless watermelon.

There are many examples of existing polyploids, particularly in the food category, where multigenerational intensive breeding has occurred. Examples such as - maize, watermelons, wheat, cotton, potatoes, cabbage, leek, strawberries, pansies, oat, peanuts, sugar cane, bananas, tobacco and apples.
Go back to Tree Adaption Process.