Tools for forest tree breeders – usable by professionals, for educational purposes and ultimately, for conservation purposes

Tree breeders are facing difficult challenges in their activities. The tool POPSIM can evaluate and optimise tree breeding strategies. The simulated distribution of “actual” outcomes reflects random sampling. Making it possible to predict outcomes for complicated pedigrees and combinations of breeding methods over several cycles. The tool OPSEL can maintain future genetic diversity, while at the same time maximizing response to selection. Optimal selection will not completely avoid kinship, but rather maximize gain while imposing a constraint on average relatedness. Useful for optimum selection in tree breeding, both for selection of breeding populations and seed orchards. The tool XDesign prepares mating plans, that represent optimum unequal contributions from selected parents, while avoiding excessive relatedness between parents, also in difficult advanced-generation material. A threshold on the maximum coancestry between parents is given and it then prepares a crossing list.