Salix suchowensis isolate:XY12 Genome sequencing and assembly. Salix suchowensis isolate:XY12

Salix suchowensis is an early-flowering shrub willow that provides a desirable system for studies on the basic biology of woody plants. Here, we report a chromosome-scale assembly of S. suchowensis generated by combining PacBio sequencing with Hi-C technologies. The obtained genome assemblies covered a total length of 356 Mb. The contig N50 of these assemblies was 263,908 bp, which was ~65-fold higher than that reported previously. The contiguity and completeness of the genome were significantly improved. By applying Hi-C data, 339.67 Mb (95.29%) of the assembled sequences were allocated to the 19 chromosomes of haploid willow. With the chromosome-scale assembly, we revealed a series of major chromosomal fissions and fusions that explain the genome divergence between the sister genera of Salix and Populus. The more complete and accurate willow reference genome obtained in this study provides a fundamental resource for studying many genetic and genomic characteristics of woody plants.