Inheritance of Fruit Red-Flesh Patterns in Peach

Fruit color is an important trait in peach from the point of view of consumer preference, nutritional content, and diversification of fruit typologies. Several genes and phenotypes have been described for peach flesh and skin color, and although peach color knowledge has increased in the last few years, some fruit color patterns observed in peach breeding programs have not been carefully described. In this work, we first describe some peach mesocarp color patterns that have not yet been described in a collection of commercial peach cultivars, and we also study the genetic inheritance of the red dots present in the flesh (RDF) and red color around the stone (CAS) in several intra- and interspecific segregating populations for both traits. For RDF, we identified a QTL at the beginning of G5 in two intraspecific populations, and for CAS we identified a major QTL in G4 in both an intraspecific and an interspecific population between almond and peach. Finally, we discuss the interaction between these QTLs and some other genes previously identified in peach, such as dominant blood flesh (DBF), color around the stone (Cs), subacid (D) and the maturity date (MD), and the implications for peach breeding. The results obtained here will help peach germplasm curators and breeders to better characterize their plant materials and to develop an integrated system of molecular markers to select these traits.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Inheritance of Fruit Red-Flesh Patterns in Peach

Fruit color is an important trait in peach from the point of view of consumer preference, nutritional content, and diversification of fruit typologies. Several genes and phenotypes have been described for peach flesh and skin color, and although peach color knowledge has increased in the last few years, some fruit color patterns observed in peach breeding programs have not been carefully described. In this work, we first describe some peach mesocarp color patterns that have not yet been described in a collection of commercial peach cultivars, and we also study the genetic inheritance of the red dots present in the flesh (RDF) and red color around the stone (CAS) in several intra- and interspecific segregating populations for both traits. For RDF, we identified a QTL at the beginning of G5 in two intraspecific populations, and for CAS we identified a major QTL in G4 in both an intraspecific and an interspecific population between almond and peach. Finally, we discuss the interaction between these QTLs and some other genes previously identified in peach, such as dominant blood flesh (DBF), color around the stone (Cs), subacid (D) and the maturity date (MD), and the implications for peach breeding. The results obtained here will help peach germplasm curators and breeders to better characterize their plant materials and to develop an integrated system of molecular markers to select these traits

‘Honeycrisp’ Bitter Pit Response to Rootstock and Region under Eastern New York Climatic Conditions

There are still unknown factors at play in the causation of bitter pit in ‘Honeycrisp’ as well as in other apple varieties. To investigate some of these factors, we conducted a survey of 34 ‘Honeycrisp’ orchard blocks distributed across two disparate production regions in eastern New York State, representing a variety of rootstocks, over three growing seasons. Weather, soil, horticultural traits, fruit quality traits, pick timing, leaf and peel minerals were evaluated for their impact on bitter pit (BP) incidence; factors were further evaluated for their interaction with region and rootstock. ‘Honeycrisp’ trees on B.9 rootstock were smaller but with comparable terminal shoot growth when compared to those on M.26 and M.9 rootstocks. B.9 fruits, which had similar fruit size to M.26 and M.9 and had good fruit quality at harvest and after storage, were much less likely to express bitter pit symptoms compared to M.9 and M.26 rootstocks. Not all traits evaluated individually correlated significatively with bitter pit incidence after a period in storage. Depending on rootstock and region, the correlation could be significant in one situation, with no correlation at all in another. In this study, peel Mg/Ca ratio and peel Ca correlated with BP for all three rootstocks, with the strongest correlations associated with the M.9 clones. These same traits correlated with BP for both regions. Pick timing had a significant influence on BP incidence following storage, with later picks offering better bitter pit storage performance. While excessively large fruits, those in the 48 and 56 count size categories, were found to be highly susceptible to BP regardless of rootstock, B.9 BP fruit susceptibility for smaller sizes was found to be size neutral. A PLSR prediction model for each rootstock and each region showed that different variables correlated to BP depending on the situation. Thus, the results could suggest that in addition to the variables considered in this study, there are other less studied factors that can influence the expression of BP symptoms. We strongly suggest that rootstock BP performance be considered a critical parameter when planning a commercial ‘Honeycrisp’ orchard and be evaluated in rootstock breeding and development programs prior to wide commercial release.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Flat Peach SUBLOR and SUBLIM and Flat Nectarine PERLA Series

Flat peach and flat nectarine (Prunus persica L. Batsch.) production in Spain started from local cultivars at marginal sites, mainly in the Ebro Valley and Murcia regions. At the end of the 1990s, the introduction of improved cultivars from France and Italy, with more red skin color coverage and better regular shape, fruit size, and stylar cavity closure, together with superior handling and transport conditions led the Spanish peach sector to develop this fruit type on a commercial scale. Currently, Spain is the largest European producer and exporter of flat peach and nectarine, offering a wide range of cultivars covering the producing period from May to September. In 2020, a total of 10.200 ha for flat peach and 481 ha for flat nectarine together produced 263.651 t (20% of the total peach production) (MAPAMA, 2022). To guarantee adaptation to local growing conditions (Font i Forcada et al., 2021a), several national breeding programs started to develop new flat peach and flat nectarine cultivars. One of these breeding programs is the ASF-IRTA breeding program, which is located at Gimenells (Lleida) in the Ebro Valley (northeastern Spain), which is a major region of peach production in Spain (Batlle et al., 2012; Cantín et al., 2017). It was started in 2004, with the objective of developing new cultivars adapted to chilling between 1000 and 1500 chill units or between 42 and 75 chill portions and warm conditions similar to the Mediterranean area (32 °C mean daily summer temperature and 300–400 mm of annual rainfall). It aimed to produce high-quality fruits, both at harvest and after cold storage, with the ultimate goal of satisfying consumers (Font i Forcada et al., 2021a, 2021b). As a result of this collaborative effort, the ASF-IRTA scion peach breeding program has already released the SUBLOR (one flat yellow-fleshed peach), SUBLIM (six flat white-fleshed peach), and PERLA (two flat white-fleshed nectarine) series. These nine new flat peach and nectarine cultivars produce highly attractive yellow-fleshed or white-fleshed fruits with high coverage of red skin, a balanced or acid flavor, sweet taste, and good flesh firmness. The harvesting calendar of these series will be progressively completed with new future releases.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Impact Of Chill And Heat Exposures Under Diverse Climatic Conditions On Peach And Nectarine Flowering Phenology

The present study aims to generalize cultivar-specific tree phenology responses to winter and spring temperatures and assess the effectiveness of the Tabuenca test and various chill and heat accumulation models in predicting bloom dates for a wide range of climatic conditions and years. To this end, we estimated the dates of rest completion and blooming and correlated them with observed bloom dates for 14 peach and nectarine cultivars that were evaluated in 11 locations across Europe (Greece, France, Italy, Romania and Spain), within the EUFRIN cultivar testing trial network. Chill accumulation varied considerably among the studied sites, ranging from 45 Chill Portions (CP) in Murcia-Torre Pacheco (Spain) to 97–98 CP in Cuneo (Italy) and Bucharest (Romania). Rest completion occurred latest or was not achieved at all for some cultivars in the southern sites in Murcia. Dormancy release happened earliest in Bucharest and Cuneo, sites where heat accumulation had a strong influence on the regulation of bloom time. Blooming occurred earliest in the moderately cold regions of Lleida (Spain) and Bellegarde (France), and 7–11 days later in the warmer locations of Rome (Italy) and Naoussa (Greece), suggesting that bloom timing is strongly influenced by delayed rest completion in these locations. The Dynamic Model resulted in both more homogeneous chill accumulation across years and better predictions of bloom dates, compared with the Utah, Positive Utah and Chilling Hours models. Prediction of bloom dates was less successful for low-chill cultivars than for medium- and high-chill cultivars. Further climatic and experimental data are needed to make estimates of the climatic needs of peach cultivars more robust and to generate reliable advice for enhancing the resilience of peach production under varying and changing climatic conditions.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Definición del núcleo optimizado de la colección de conservación del manzano español

5 Pags.- 1 Tabl.Este trabajo tiene como objetivo determinar la estrategia más adecuada para la selección del conjunto mínimo de accesiones (núcleo optimizado) que represente eficientemente la variación genética del manzano conservado en las colecciones españolas. Este núcleo optimizado mediante criterios genéticos constituirá la base de la colección nuclear de conservación, que podrá ser complementado con accesiones seleccionadas por otros criterios (morfo-fisiológicos, agronómicos, valor histórico, etc.). Se ha evaluado la eficiencia de estrategias de selección por búsqueda local estocástica avanzada (ASLS) que diferían tanto por el tamaño final del núcleo como por la combinación (y peso relativo) de las medidas de distancia genética y riqueza alélica a optimizar. Las estrategias empleadas han proporcionado núcleos optimizados con grandes diferencias en la diversidad conservada, así como en el nivel de representación de la estructura genética general. Teniendo en cuenta el uso principal de la colección nuclear, la estrategia que ofrece un mejor equilibrio entre representatividad y adecuación al uso es la que combina la optimización de la distancia media entre cada accesión de la colección y la entrada en el núcleo más cercana con el índice de Shannon y la recuperación de alelos.Este trabajo ha sido financiado por los proyectos INIA RF2011-00017-C05-00 y RTA2015-00052-C02-00Peer reviewe

Development of a standardized methodology for phenotypical characterizations in apple

4 Pags.- 2 Tabls. Articles derived from XIV EUCARPIA Symposium on Fruit Breeding and Genetics (Bologna,Italy. June 14-18 2015) . The definitive version is available at: http://www.actahort.org/index.htmThe description of phenotypic traits in apple cultivars is generally performed using internationally agreed descriptors such as UPOV guidelines, which defines for each trait several states of expression. However, it is not always possible to classify a cultivar unambiguously using those guidelines, because in practice the states are not clearly enough defined or the example cultivars are not always available in the collections. This work presents the results of a harmonization project performed by the teams responsible of the main apple germplasm collections in Spain. The objective was to develop a standardized method for the 57 traits included in the TG/14/9 UPOV guidelines for apple characterization, defining their states of expression in a clear and unambiguous way for Spanish germplasm. Phenotypic data collected for more than 1,600 accessions from Spanish collections were used and the method to define each state depended on the type of expression. For quantitative traits the number of states and their limits were defined according to the variability that exists within and between accessions. For qualitative traits, high-resolution images clearly depicting each state were selected. A standardized characterization protocol for the 57 traits of apple germplasm has been provided, enabling to comparing properly the phenotypes of Spanish genetic resources.This Project has been funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation/National Institute for Agricultural and Food Research and Technology (RF2011- 00017-C05-00).Peer reviewe

Development of a standardized methodology for phenotypical characterizations in apple

1 pag.This work presents the results of a harmonization project performed by the teams responsible of the main apple germplasm collections in Spain. The objective was to develop a standardized method for the 57 traits included in the TG/14/9 UPOV guidelines for apple characterization, defining their states of expression in a clear and unambiguous way for Spanish germplasm.Peer reviewe

Selección de nuevas variedades de melocotón [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] en función de caracteres agronómicos, morfológicos, de calidad y de conservación del fruto

Espanya és el quart productor de préssec [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] i el segon a escala europea, amb una producció anual de més d’un milió de tones. La majoria de les varietats comercialitzades provenen de programes de millora genética d’Estats Units, Itàlia i França, la qual cosa ha provocat un gran dependència dels obtentors estrangers i ha donat lloc a l’aparició de diferents programes nacionals de millora i selecció de noves varietats adaptades a les condicions edafo-climàtiques de les principals zones de cultiu. No obstant, aquesta actual dependència juntament amb la falta d’adaptabilitat de moltes de les varietats quan aquestes són cultivades en zones de condicions climàtiques diferents a les que han estat obtingudes, la necessitat requerida pels agricultors i tècnics de camp a obtenir dades sobre el seu comportament agronòmic i qualitatiu ha donat lloc a la necessitat d’obtenir aquesta informació, que és lo que l’IRTA-Estació Experimental de Lleida està duent a terme en les seves parcel•les experimentals des de 1994, marc d’aquesta Tesis Doctoral. L’objectiu general d’aquest estudi és la caracterització agronòmica, morfològica i qualitativa de varietats comercials de préssec, nectarina, pavia, préssec pla i nectarina plana cultivades a la zona de la Vall de l’Ebre, amb la finalitat d’aprofundir en el coneixement d’aquells factors que poden afectar a una bona elecció per part dels agricultors, tècnics i comercials. A més, s’ha estudiat l’evolució de la maduració i la qualitat en camp, així com el comportament en postcollita de diferents varietats de nectarina cultivades en parcel•les comercials.España es el cuarto productor mundial de melocotón [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] y el segundo a escala europea, con una producción anual de más de un millón de toneladas. Las variedades comercializadas proceden en su mayoría de programas de mejora genética de Estados Unidos, Italia y Francia, lo que ha provocado una excesiva dependencia de los obtentores extranjeros, y ha dado lugar a la aparición de diferentes programas nacionales de mejora y selección de nuevas variedades adaptadas a las condiciones edafo-climáticas de las principales áreas de cultivo. La actual dependencia juntamente con la falta de adaptabilidad de muchas variedades extranjeras cuando éstas son cultivadas en zonas de cultivo diferentes de donde han sido obtenidas, y la inmediatez requerida por los agricultores y técnicos de campo para obtener datos sobre su comportamiento agronómico y cualitativo, ha dado lugar a la necesidad de obtener esta información, y es lo que el IRTA-Estación Experimental de Lleida está llevando a cabo en sus parcelas de experimentación desde 1994, marco de esta Tesis Doctoral. El objetivo general de este estudio es la caracterización agronómica, morfológica y cualitativa de variedades comerciales de melocotón, nectarina, pavía, melocotón plano y nectarina plana cultivadas en la zona del Valle del Ebro, con el fin de profundizar en el conocimiento de aquellos factores que puedan afectar a una buena elección por parte de los agricultores, técnicos, y comerciales. Además, se ha estudiado la evolución de la maduración y de la calidad en campo, así como el comportamiento en poscosecha de diferentes variedades de nectarina cultivadas en parcelas comerciales.Spain is the fourth largest peach crop [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] producer in the world and the second producer in the European Union with an annual production more than one million tons. The commercialized cultivars have their origin in different breeding programs, mainly from USA, Italy and France breeding programs. This has produced an excessive and not desirable dependency on the foreign breeders, and boost to the development of different national breeding and selection programs for the selection of new cultivars well-adapted to the main growing areas climatic conditions. Nevertheless, this current dependency together with the lack of adaptation of some of these cultivars when they are grown under climatic conditions different from those where they were originally developed, the immediacy required by growers and technicians to establish an experimental trial to provide data about agronomic and qualitative performance, has led to the need to obtain this information. This is what IRTA-Experimental Station of Lleida is carrying on its experimental fields since 1994, framework of this thesis. The general objective of the study was the agronomical, morphological and qualitative characterization of commercial melting peach, nectarine, nonmelting peach, flat peach and flat nectarine cultivars grown in the Ebro Valle area, in order to gain a better understanding of which factors can contribute to growers, technicians and retailers to make a good choice. Another objective has been the study of ripening and quality evolution in the field, as well as postharvest performance of different nectarine cultivars from commercial orchards

Selección de nuevas variedades de melocotón [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] en función de caracteres agronómicos, morfológicos, de calidad y de conservación del fruto

Espanya és el quart productor de préssec [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] i el segon a escala europea, amb una producció anual de més d’un milió de tones. La majoria de les varietats comercialitzades provenen de programes de millora genética d’Estats Units, Itàlia i França, la qual cosa ha provocat un gran dependència dels obtentors estrangers i ha donat lloc a l’aparició de diferents programes nacionals de millora i selecció de noves varietats adaptades a les condicions edafo-climàtiques de les principals zones de cultiu. No obstant, aquesta actual dependència juntament amb la falta d’adaptabilitat de moltes de les varietats quan aquestes són cultivades en zones de condicions climàtiques diferents a les que han estat obtingudes, la necessitat requerida pels agricultors i tècnics de camp a obtenir dades sobre el seu comportament agronòmic i qualitatiu ha donat lloc a la necessitat d’obtenir aquesta informació, que és lo que l’IRTA-Estació Experimental de Lleida està duent a terme en les seves parcel•les experimentals des de 1994, marc d’aquesta Tesis Doctoral. L’objectiu general d’aquest estudi és la caracterització agronòmica, morfològica i qualitativa de varietats comercials de préssec, nectarina, pavia, préssec pla i nectarina plana cultivades a la zona de la Vall de l’Ebre, amb la finalitat d’aprofundir en el coneixement d’aquells factors que poden afectar a una bona elecció per part dels agricultors, tècnics i comercials. A més, s’ha estudiat l’evolució de la maduració i la qualitat en camp, així com el comportament en postcollita de diferents varietats de nectarina cultivades en parcel•les comercials.España es el cuarto productor mundial de melocotón [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] y el segundo a escala europea, con una producción anual de más de un millón de toneladas. Las variedades comercializadas proceden en su mayoría de programas de mejora genética de Estados Unidos, Italia y Francia, lo que ha provocado una excesiva dependencia de los obtentores extranjeros, y ha dado lugar a la aparición de diferentes programas nacionales de mejora y selección de nuevas variedades adaptadas a las condiciones edafo-climáticas de las principales áreas de cultivo. La actual dependencia juntamente con la falta de adaptabilidad de muchas variedades extranjeras cuando éstas son cultivadas en zonas de cultivo diferentes de donde han sido obtenidas, y la inmediatez requerida por los agricultores y técnicos de campo para obtener datos sobre su comportamiento agronómico y cualitativo, ha dado lugar a la necesidad de obtener esta información, y es lo que el IRTA-Estación Experimental de Lleida está llevando a cabo en sus parcelas de experimentación desde 1994, marco de esta Tesis Doctoral. El objetivo general de este estudio es la caracterización agronómica, morfológica y cualitativa de variedades comerciales de melocotón, nectarina, pavía, melocotón plano y nectarina plana cultivadas en la zona del Valle del Ebro, con el fin de profundizar en el conocimiento de aquellos factores que puedan afectar a una buena elección por parte de los agricultores, técnicos, y comerciales. Además, se ha estudiado la evolución de la maduración y de la calidad en campo, así como el comportamiento en poscosecha de diferentes variedades de nectarina cultivadas en parcelas comerciales.Spain is the fourth largest peach crop [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] producer in the world and the second producer in the European Union with an annual production more than one million tons. The commercialized cultivars have their origin in different breeding programs, mainly from USA, Italy and France breeding programs. This has produced an excessive and not desirable dependency on the foreign breeders, and boost to the development of different national breeding and selection programs for the selection of new cultivars well-adapted to the main growing areas climatic conditions. Nevertheless, this current dependency together with the lack of adaptation of some of these cultivars when they are grown under climatic conditions different from those where they were originally developed, the immediacy required by growers and technicians to establish an experimental trial to provide data about agronomic and qualitative performance, has led to the need to obtain this information. This is what IRTA-Experimental Station of Lleida is carrying on its experimental fields since 1994, framework of this thesis. The general objective of the study was the agronomical, morphological and qualitative characterization of commercial melting peach, nectarine, nonmelting peach, flat peach and flat nectarine cultivars grown in the Ebro Valle area, in order to gain a better understanding of which factors can contribute to growers, technicians and retailers to make a good choice. Another objective has been the study of ripening and quality evolution in the field, as well as postharvest performance of different nectarine cultivars from commercial orchards