Abstract
BACKGROUND: Orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.) is one of the four most economically important forage grasses cultivated globally and serves as an excellent perennial forage with high ecological value. Plant height is a key determinant of both biomass and grain yield. While numerous genes regulating plant height have been identified in annual crops, no such genes have been reported for orchardgrass. RESULTS: In this study, we analyzed the relationship between plant height and biomass yield in a natural population of 264 orchardgrass genotypes and found that a plant height of 90-110 cm contributed to the maximum biomass yield. Genome-wide association analysis (GWAS) identified 23 candidate loci associated with plant height, corresponding to 62 candidate genes. Among these, DgSAUR71, a member of the small auxin-up RNA (SAUR) gene family, emerged as a novel candidate gene associated with plant height. Functional analysis revealed that DgSAUR71 slightly reduced plant height in rice (Oryza sativa L.) and was involved in regulating plant height in orchardgrass. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that plant height is an important contributor for optimizing biomass yield in orchardgrass, with an optimal range identified. DgSAUR71 was identified as a gene associated with plant height through GWAS and shown to negatively regulate plant height. These findings provide new insights into plant height regulation in orchardgrass and contribute to advancing crop height diversification research.