34 research outputs found
Evaluation of novel peach cultivars in the European Union: the EUFRIN Peach and Apricot Working Group initiative
No full textPeach cultivars can undergo large performance variations when cultivated in different environmental conditions. As growers cannot afford the financial risk of choosing a cultivar unsuited to their specific conditions, information as comprehensive as possible on the marketed cultivars is useful and highly needed. Several organizations in the European Union (EU) are engaged in the performance assessment of the novel cultivars based on experimental trials. However, the exchange of information is overall poor, limiting the completeness of information on new releases that would derive from integrating the results obtained in various climatic and agronomical contexts. The Apricot and Peach working group established in 2014 within EUFRIN (European Fruit Research Institutes Network, www.eufrin.org) has recently embarked on a new initiative aiming to implement a collaborative varietal evaluation system in the EU countries. The first step was the establishment o fa common list of descriptors to assess the performance of peach cultivars in the testing trials. About 40 descriptors, related to different phenological traits as flowering or harvest period, productivity, fruit appearance and internal quality, susceptibility to physiological disorders and to some major diseases in peach were selected. The protocols to measure and score each trait are being set up, as well as the selection of a common set of cultivars to include as references in the various testing sites in order to homogenize the evaluation. Implementation of this network will allow a real-time information exchange on the new peach releases
Molecular and morphological diversity of on-farm hazelnut (Corylus avellana L.) landraces from southern Europe and their role in the origin and diffusion of cultivated germplasm
No full textHazelnut (Corylus avellana L.) is a traditional nut crop in southern Europe. Germplasm exploration conducted on-farm in five countries (Portugal, Spain, Italy, Slovenia, and Greece) identified 77 landraces. The present work describes phenotypic variation in nut and husk traits and investigates genetic relationships using ten simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers among these landraces, 57 well-known references cultivars, and 19 wild accessions. Among the 77 landraces, 42 had unique fingerprints while 35 showed a SSR profile identical to a known cultivar. Among the 42 unique landraces, morphological observations revealed high phenotypic diversity, and some had characteristics appreciated by
the market such as nut round and caliber. Analysis of genetic relationships and population structure allowed investigation of the origin and spread of the cultivated germplasm in southern Europe. Our results indicate the existence of three primary centers of diversity in the Mediterranean basin: northwestern Spain (Tarragona) and southern Italy (Campania) in the West and Black Sea (Turkey) in the East. Moreover, the data suggest the existence of secondary gene pools in the Iberian (Asturias) and Italian (Liguria and Latium) Peninsulas, where
local varieties were recently domesticated from wild forms and/or from introduced ancient domesticated varieties
Protein and mineral nutrient contents in kernels from 72 sweet almond cultivars and accessions grown in France, Greece and Italy
No full textAlmond protein and potassium (K), phosphorus (P), calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) contents were determined in 72 cultivars and accessions grown in France, Greece and Italy, as part of the networking of European SAFENUTAGRI GEN RES project, which aimed to explore and valorize the almond genetic resources in Europe. Great variation was found in the nutrient content and the amount of nutrient supplied when consuming the recommended daily amount of one serving of almond, among the different genotypes assayed. The variation among the different genotypes was greatest for Ca, followed by the protein content; the latter also exhibited the lowest variation considering the harvest year. Results from a principal component analysis showed that P and Mg were the most discriminant elements for categorizing samples. Cluster analysis showed groups of samples with interesting characteristics for breeding. There was no clear distinction among the different origins of samples. Correlation analyses between weather conditions and the nutrients assayed showed that the mean temperature recorded in the period between March and September was positively correlated with Ca and P only in France, a place where the greatest climatic difference between years was observed
SNPs identification and association study of fruit quality genes from selected whole-genome sequenced peach cultivars grown in Greece
No full textIn Greece, peach is one of the largest cultivations both in terms of hectares and in economic profit, with table peaches representing a 40% and industrial peaches the 60%. Next generation sequence technologies can prove valuable in evaluating present peach cultivars and getting the necessary knowledge to develop new cultivars with appreciable quality traits. Whole genome sequencing was performed on selected peach cultivars (‘Romea’, ‘Virgil’, ‘Catherina’, ‘Fergold’, ‘Crimson Lady’, ‘Rubirich’, ‘Rebus 028’, ‘Early Top’) and a local cultivar called ‘Lemonato’. These cultivars were selected according to their differences in specific fruit quality traits, such as slow melting flesh, stone adhesion and hardness, fruit color (skin and flesh), fruit size, along with maturity date and fruit productivity. Sequencing was performed using Illumina Nextseq 550 platform, with Nextera DNA Flex indexes, resulting in over 150 million reads with an average GC of 38.5%. The aim of this study is the identification of SNPs associated with genes that control important fruit quality characteristics and the development of molecular markers linked to these traits. The number of SNPs associated with each of these genes and the number of useful SNPs for marker-assisted selection varied accordingly. A total of 1,535 SNPs with high impact effect on known and putative genes were identified across all cultivars. SNPs identified in genes that are involved in biological processes (cellular and metabolic process) were the most abundant. © 2022 International Society for Horticultural Science. All rights reserved
Effects of climate change on cherry production in Naoussa, Greece and Bonn, Germany: adaptation strategies
No full text<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>The aim of the present study was to identify sweet cherry varieties and growing regions that are resilient to climate change as well as strategies for mitigating the effects of climate change on sweet cherry production in a Northern European location (Meckenheim, Germany) and a Southern European location (Naoussa, Imathia, Greece). Sweet cherry was chosen for this study as it is sensitive to reduced chill accumulation (i.e., fewer chilling hours in winter) and to late frost damage caused by flower opening time advancement. Whereas initial predictions suggested that fruit growing in Southern Europe is particularly sensitive to climate change, our comparison of long-term records of both phenological (flowering) data and weather (frost, temperature) at both locations indicated the opposite. The annual mean temperature in Naoussa increased during 1984–2018 by 1.6 °C to 15.8 °C, whereas it increased during 1958–2018 by 1.5 °C to 9.8 °C in Meckenheim. In Naoussa, flowering was found to have advanced by 6.7 days in the late-flowering cherry cultivar ‘Tragana Edessis,’ but by as much as 8.3 days in the early flowering ‘B. Burlat,’ 1.5 days in ‘Vogue,’ and 3.2 days ‘Larian’ over the last 35 years (1984–2019). In the temperate climate of the Meckenheim cherry-growing area, flowering advanced by 14.1 days during the period 1978–2019 in the early flowering and early maturing cultivar ‘B. Burlat,’ such that it now coincides with the late spring frost. This flowering advancement in Meckenheim was almost twice that observed for ‘B. Burlat’ cherries in Naoussa. Thus, in contrast to what was previously thought, cherries grown in Naoussa may be more resilient to climate change due to the essentially frost-free climate during and after cherry flowering and the occurrence of sufficient chilling hours during winter. This strength may enable Imathia to export sweet cherries to Northern Europe in May, a time of the year when the fruit of this region is not yet available. By contrast, sweet cherry production in the colder climate at Meckenhein shows greater lowering advancement is more susceptible to frost (and therefore requires frost protection technology), making it less resilient to climate change.</jats:p>
