The complete chloroplast genome sequence of a cultivar of Chrysanthemum, Chrysanthemum x morifolium 'Hangbaiju' (Asteraceae)

Chrysanthemum x morifolium Ramat 1792 cultivar 'Hangbaiju', also known as 'Hangzhou White Chrysanthemum', originates from Tongxiang City, Zhejiang Province, China. It is celebrated as one of Zhejiang's 'eight flavors'. In this study, we reported the complete chloroplast genome of Chrysanthemum x morifolium cultivar 'Hangbaiju'. The genome has a circular structure of 151,110 bp containing a large single-copy region (LSC) of 82,851 bp, a small copy region (SSC) of 18,351 bp, and two inverted repeats (IR) of 24,936 and 24,972 bp in length. It comprises 128 genes: 85 protein-coding gene, 8 ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes, and 35 transfer RNA (tRNA) genes. Phylogenetic analysis, based on complete chloroplast genomes, demonstrates that Chrysanthemum x morifolium 'Hangbaiju' shares a close genetic cluster with Chrysanthemum x morifolium 'Fubaiju' (MT1919691.1). Notably, 'Fubaiju' was introduced to Macheng, Hubei Province from Tongxiang in 1968 according to public information. The chloroplast genome data, coupled with morphological and historical records, strongly suggest that they are the same variety known by different names based on their cultivation locations.