Neoteny of the European plane tree

Abstract

The neoteny of 64-day-old European plane tree autovegetative progeny is described, starting from the fact that sexual maturity in the juvenile stage of tree development is a rare and significant process by which the period of synthesis of new lower taxonomic units is shortened. The observed formation of European plane tree reproductive organs has been classified as induced neoteny. Compared to the inflorescences of mature European plane trees, the number of precocious inflorescences was lower, flower structure was simpler, and the diameters of inflorescences were the same. As neoteny is a genetic and physiological marker for the tree genotype and the species, and as it is classified as an example of parallel-inherited variability explained by changed interactions of trophic, hormonal and genetic systems, this analysis of neoteny can be a contribution to its further scientific study and its practical utilization at a larger scale.