The long life cycle, large size, and (generally) poorly characterised genetics of trees all make breeding responses to climate change more costly and slower than for annual species. Indeed, in the neo-tropics, Guariguata et al. (2008) were unable to identify any changes to industrial tree breeding approaches that were aimed specifically to this end. A breeding response to climate change requires

agile and accurate methods that can deliver the needed genetic VE-821 improvements but with substantially reduced time and resources. More than ever, breeding programs need to target several traits simultaneously, while conserving large genetic bases for unpredictable adaptation needs (Eriksson et al., 1993). The recent development of Next Generation Sequencing and Genotyping by Sequencing approaches offers an unlimited number of genetic markers, creating opportunities for new developments. These include pedigree reconstruction, so the breeding phase

of tree improvement can be by-passed (e.g., “Breeding Without Breeding”; El-Kassaby and Lstiburek, 2009), with additional simplifications in testing (El-Kassaby et al., 2011); the use of pedigree-free models that can deliver genetic assessments with unprecedented precision, with the added advantage of applicability to unstructured natural populations (El-Kassaby learn more et al., 2012, Klápště et al., 2013 and Korecký et al., 2013); and selection methods that utilize information from the entire genome (Meuwissen et al., 2001). Additionally, new methods for bulking-up and delivering the improvements of breeding are needed for commercially

important species, as traditional methods (e.g., seed orchards) are slow. Renewed efforts are needed for improving and simplifying vegetative propagation Dimethyl sulfoxide methods, starting from the conventional production of rooted-cuttings through to somatic embryogenesis. Forest resilience and ecosystem stability are required to ensure the future flow of ecosystem services over space and time in the support of world societies (FAO, 2010). These depend on maintaining genetic diversity, functional species diversity and ecosystem diversity (beta diversity) across forest landscapes and over time. Only adapted and adaptable genetic material will, for example, efficiently mitigate global carbon emissions. From a forest management perspective, adapting to climate change (and mitigating its effects) requires the adoption of the “precautionary principle” and maintaining options including intra-specific diversity (UNESCO, 2005). Tree species generally contain high genetic diversity in many of the traits and genes analysed, which supports this principle (Jump et al., 2008), but the potential of trees to respond to climate change should not be over-estimated (Nepstad et al., 2007).