@article{RaabovaMuenzbergovaFischer2009,
  author    = {Raabov{\´a}, Jana and Muenzbergov{\´a}, Zuzana and Fischer, Markus},
  title     = {Consequences of near and far between-population crosses for offspring fitness in a rare herb},
  issn      = {1435-8603},
  doi       = {10.1111/j.1438-8677.2008.00186.x},
  year      = {2009},
  abstract  = {Crosses between plants from different populations may result in heterosis or outbreeding depression. However, despite its importance for conservation, little is known about the spatial scale over which these effects may arise. To investigate the consequences of between-population crosses at two distinct spatial scales, we conducted reciprocal crosses between four populations from two regions in the rare perennial herb Aster amellus. We assessed seed set and offspring fitness in a common garden experiment. Overall, between-population crosses within regions (10 km) resulted in 8\% lower seed set than within-population crosses, while between-region crosses (70 km) resulted in 17\% higher seed set than within-population crosses. Moreover, offspring from between-population crosses produced 18\% more flower heads than offspring from within-population crosses. We conclude that hybridisation between A. amellus plants from different populations did not lead to immediate outbreeding depression and, thus, could represent a valid conservation option to increase genetic diversity. Moreover, our results suggest that the distance between populations affects the outputs of between-population crosses and therefore needs to be taken into account when promoting gene flow between populations.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{RaabovaMuenzbergovaFischer2011,
  author    = {Raabova, Jana and Muenzbergova, Zuzana and Fischer, Markus},
  title     = {The role of spatial scale and soil for local adaptation in Inula hirta},
  series = {Basic and applied ecology : Journal of the Gesellschaft f{\"u}r {\"O}kologie},
  volume    = {12},
  journal   = {Basic and applied ecology : Journal of the Gesellschaft f{\"u}r {\"O}kologie},
  number    = {2},
  publisher = {Elsevier},
  address   = {Jena},
  issn      = {1439-1791},
  doi       = {10.1016/j.baae.2011.01.001},
  pages     = {152 -- 160},
  year      = {2011},
  abstract  = {Many plant populations are adapted to their local environment. Reciprocal transplant experiments in the field and in the experimental garden allow for studying different aspects of local adaptation. However, usually only one of these approaches is used. We applied both experimental approaches to study the role of spatial scale and soil conditions for local adaptation in the perennial herb Inula hirta. We reciprocally sowed seeds and transplanted juvenile plants among six field sites from two regions and, in the garden, among pots with soil from each field site. We recorded germination percentage, survival percentage, number of stems and plant height in all experiments. We also recorded above- and below-ground biomass, flowering percentage and the number of flower heads in the garden. No population-specific local adaptation was detected in germination, survival, flowering percentages or in the number of flower heads. At the regional scale in the field, however, the performance of local transplants was higher than the performance of foreign transplants by 10\% and 7\% in the two regions, respectively. Similarly, when grown in the garden in soil from the more basic and nutrient-poorer region, plant height and aboveground biomass of local transplants were higher than the corresponding values for foreign transplants by 31\% and 112\%, respectively. Congruent evidence for local adaptation from the juvenile-transplant experiments in field and garden suggests that soil conditions represent an important factor of local adaptation in I. hirta. Overall, our results show that both spatial scale and soil conditions play an important role for local adaptation in I. hirta. Moreover, we underline the importance of combining field and garden experiments to reveal factors affecting local adaptation in plants.},
  language  = {en}
}