The training population consisted of 1575 full and half-sib individuals, genotyped with the Eucalyptus (EUChip60K) SNP chip resulting in 15,040 informative SNP markers. We present results of a GS study of growth and wood quality traits in an operational Eucalyptus grandis breeding program in South Africa. Practical implementation of GS in tree breeding requires an assessment of significant drivers of genetic gains over time, which may differ among species and breeding objectives. Genomic selection (GS) can substantially reduce breeding cycle times in forest trees compared to traditional breeding cycles.
