Abstract: In this study, we periodically measured the growth increments of 450 progeny in F₁,a fully sib family of the annually harvesting basket willow(Salix xuzhouenesis). Growth rhythm was fit and analysed using different non-linear models of Logistic, Gompertz and Von Bertalanffy. The results showed that the indices of fitness(R²)of these three models were all up to 0.98. However, the expected values obtained with Logistic and Gompertz models diverged significantly from the observed values at the beginning growth stage. By contrast, the expected value of Von Bertalanffy model fit well with the observed value through the whole growth season, and with the highest R² of 0.994. We established the ideal statistical model that can be used to track the dynamic changes in the growth rates of a basket willow pedigree. This study provided essential information for learning the dynamic expression of genes underlying the dynamic growth rates for S. xuzhouensis.

Key words: Salix xuzhouenesis, biomass, plant height, growth curve