Roosterlorn said:Rick, do you know if are they a mix of clones and strains or are they all clones? (those in Arneson Park).
I don't know for sure. I've never heard of any strains being developed in Minnesota, but I could be wrong. I'll shoot an email off to Forrest, our Prez. He seems to know about these things.
Outrunning diseases and viruses through cloning is done by meristem culture. The idea is that the new clones are propagated from the newest produced cells that have never had time to be infected by viruses or diseases that the donor plant hosts. How often a clone is propagated through traditional asexual methods, as far as I know, wouldn't have an effect on virus habitation. I do have a lot of unanswered questions about this, which I don't doubt have valid replies. I've just never followed up.
That persistent Lilium clones exist through many decades or even centuries certainly does demonstrate their remarkable resistance and/or tolerance to viruses.
The concept pops up in my mind often, most recently in a discussion on another forum site, and about crocuses. Crocus, as are many genera in the Liliaceae family, are susceptible to viruses. Did you know that the true saffron crocus is actually a sterile triploid? Yet it is recorded from early Roman times. Talk about staying power!
