Performance of an Elite Strawberry Population Derived from Wild Germplasm of Fragaria chiloensis and F. virginiana

Abstract

Fragaria ×ananassa Duchesne ex Rozier, or the cultivated strawberry, resulted from the hybridization of two wild species, F. chiloensis (L.) Miller and F. virginiana Miller. In an attempt to recreate the cultivated strawberry, elite clones of F. chiloensis and F. virginiana were crossed within species and then hybridized to produce 26 reconstructed populations. Of these populations, FVC11 [(Frederick 9 × LH 50-4) × (Scotts Creek × 2 MAR 1A)] had unusually large fruit size and was selected for further analysis. In the summer of 2008, 78 individuals of this population were evaluated for their seasonal flowering patterns, inflorescence number, inflorescence height, crown production, flower number, fruit size, yield, internal color, soluble solids, fruit firmness, and plant vigor. Progeny means were compared with those of the parental means and most traits exhibited transgressive segregation, most notably yield and fruit weight. Significant positive correlations were found between many of the production traits, although there were significant negative correlations between fruit firmness and flower number per inflorescence, fruit firmness and soluble solids, and yield per plant and soluble solids. Overall performance scores were assigned to each genotype by summing their relative performance for each trait in the population. Individuals were identified that combined high values for fruit weight and yield with higher than average values for fruit color, firmness, and soluble solids. Use of this population in breeding programs could help expand the genetic base of the cultivated strawberry with limited linkage drag.