A DNA barcode library for woody plants in tropical and subtropical China

We developed a comprehensive barcode library that includes both standard barcodes and super-barcodes for woody plants in tropical and subtropical China. The standard barcode library contains the four most widely used barcodes (rbcL, matK, ITS, and ITS2) for 2,520 species from 4,733 samples across 49 orders, 144 families, and 683 genera, and includes 79 samples identified to the genus level, while the super-barcode library consists of 1,239 samples from 1,139 species, 411 genera, 113 families, and 40 orders. Our library generated 5,937 novel standard barcode sequences for 1,696 species and 268 new plastid genome sequences for 264 species that will enrich the current barcode database for woody plants in subtropical and tropical China. This barcode library represents a valuable resource for taxonomic identification, ecological and evolutionary research, and biodiversity conservation in subtropical and tropical China and bordering countries.