Historical and molecular evidence of genetic identity of macadamia cultivars HAES741 and HAES660

The Hawaiian cultivars Keaau (HAES660) and Mauka (HAES741) were selected by the University of Hawaii—released in 1966 and 1977, respectively—and have been used extensively in macadamia orchards throughout the world. Recent molecular evidence suggests that these two cultivars are almost identical genetically; however, commercially they have been considered phenotypically different. This study reviews available molecular, historical, and phenotypic evidence to examine the hypothesis that these two cultivars are the same genotype. Phenotypic variability for morphological traits was observed in a replicated trial at Wolvi, QLD. Historical evidence suggests that both ‘HAES660’ and ‘HAES741’ were derived from the same orchard. We identified strong genetic and phenotypic similarities between these cultivars, with variability in some simple traits. This study provides evidence that these two cultivars are isogenic or near isogenic and may have been derived from the same plant source.