Poplar (Populus spp) is an important biomass crop for the production of timber and pulp. In addition, poplar is also widely used as a model for molecular research in trees. Although the function of an increasing number of genes is being identified, large gaps persist in our understanding of the biosynthetic pathways of specialized metabolites. This project aims to utilize genomic, transcriptomic, and metabolic data to discover biosynthetic pathways in poplar, with a focus on biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs). While the majority of the biosynthetic genes are scattered over the genome, evidence indicates that biosynthetic genes in plant specialized metabolism are often clustered, suggesting a strong selective advantage in adaptation and defense. We propose a metabolite-based genome-wide association study (GWAS) to identify genomic loci harboring BGCs that are associated with the abundance of specialized metabolites. We plan to leverage our prior expertise in GWAS and the elucidation of BGCs in Arabidopsis to uncover functional BGCs in the poplar genome. This endeavor holds promise not only to uncover the identities of poplar metabolites and their biosynthetic pathways, but also in paving the way to potential biotechnological applications. Furthermore, it advances our understanding of the role of BGCs in the adaptation and evolution of poplar, which could benefit the genetic improvement of poplar for applications in forestry.