| abstract |
The invention relates to control of flowering and reproduction in plants, and in particular to agents and methods for inducing or suppressing flowering. The invention provides isolated nucleic acid molecules which are useful for inducing flowering, particularly initiating early flowering, for delaying or suppressing flowering, or for manipulating the flowering period. In a first aspect, the invention provides an isolated nucleic acid molecule comprising a MADS box, which is capable of altering the flowering time of a plant. Preferably the nucleic acid molecule of the invention comprises a nucleotide sequence corresponding to a FLOWERING LOCUS F (FLF) gene. The nucleic acid molecule may be a genomic DNA, a cDNA, or a messenger RNA. The invention is applicable to any dicotyledonous or monocotyledonous plant species, including but not limited to decorative flower, vegetable, fruit, cereal, grass, tree, and other flowering species. |