Florida Beauty Research Articles

Early-season yield fluctuations of strawberry (Fragaria ×ananassa Duch.) follow a bimodal Gaussian model

Strawberries (Fragaria ×ananassa Duch.) are highly perishable and require intensive labor inputs for harvesting. Therefore, yield forecasting is critical for improving labor management and marketing decision-making in strawberry production. In Florida, United States, strawberry yields during winter months have a unique distribution pattern characterized by multiple waves. We hypothesized that individual yield waves can be described using Gaussian distribution, a model that represents a symmetrical bell-shaped curve. Two short-day cultivars (‘Florida Radiance’ and ‘Florida Brilliance’) and one day-neutral cultivar (‘Florida Beauty’) were grown in west-central Florida. Harvesting was performed 30 times, generally twice a week from November through February. Yield data were converted to weekly values prior to model fitting. The first two yield waves were described by a bimodal Gaussian distribution model, which was then converted into two unimodal Gaussian distribution models. The goodness of fit was very high (R2 = 0.934–0.959) for both yield waves in all tested cultivars. Different yield distribution patterns of the tested cultivars were characterized quantitatively by estimating not only the yield but also the timing and duration of each yield wave. Our modeling approach provides insights into understanding cultivar-dependent fruiting phenology, yielding capacity, and fruit earliness. Such information can help optimize yield distribution through breeding and reduce yield gaps by using different cultivars or staggered planting dates. The model developed here only applies to the first two waves of fruit production. Future research will aim to model the following yield waves to fully characterize the strawberry yield distribution.

Evaluation of Chemical Attributes of Low Chilling Strawberry (Fragraria ananassa) Varieties in Chitwan, Nepal

An experiment to evaluate the qualitative parameters of strawberries to select the promising and high-value varieties was conducted in Bharatpur-5, Chitwan Nepal. The experiment comprises eight varieties ‘Florida Beauty, Florida Festival, Sweet Sensation, Ruby Gem, Elyana, Winter Star, Winter Dawn, and Nyho (check variety) as treatments, laid out in a single factorial RCBD with four replications. The fruits of different varieties were harvested at their respective physiological maturity and fresh juice was extracted for qualitative analysis. The qualitative analyses revealed that the maximum TSS (9.88 °Brix) was recorded in the Nyho variety while the minimum TSS (6.58 °Brix) was recorded in Florida Festival. The maximum amount of TA (0.93 %) and the highest Vitamin C (75.57 mg/100 g) was recorded in fruits of Elyana while the minimum TA (0.71 %) in Sweet Sensation and the lowest amount of Vitamin C (59.89 mg/100 g) was recorded in Nyho. In the case of antioxidant properties of evaluated strawberry varieties, Elyana was found to be superior (81.33 %) while the lowest antioxidant properties were observed in fruits of variety Nyho with a value of 63.23 %. The maximum phenols content (0.64 mg GAE/g) was found on harvested fruits of Nyho while the minimum phenols content (0.24 mg GAE/g) was recorded in fruits of the Winter Star variety. Among the tested varieties, sweetness and aroma were the highest in Nyho while Elyana and Sweet Sensation were superior in nutritional attributes.

Nematode population dynamics and plant steaming effects on strawberry cultivars under organic field conditions in Florida

Summary Demand for Florida organic strawberries has significantly increased in recent years, yet this industry is threatened by pests and pathogens that often come with transplants from out-of-state nurseries. Plant steaming has been explored as an alternative to reduce those threats in transplants. This study evaluated the yield performance of seven strawberry cultivars and their impact on nematode densities and plant vigour after steaming was applied to transplants imported from California during two growing seasons (2020-2021 and 2021-2022). The cultivars used were ‘Sensation® Florida127’, ‘Florida Brilliance’, ‘Florida Radiance’, ‘Winterstar™ FL 05-107’, ‘Florida Elyana’, ‘Strawberry Festival’ and ‘Florida Beauty’. Plant steaming reduced plant vigour only 4 weeks after transplanting. Nevertheless, no negative effect was observed in total fruit yield. Differences among cultivars were observed for plant vigour, total fruit yield and abundance of root-knot nematodes. The plant vigour of each cultivar depended on the time of the year, which varied significantly throughout the season. Cultivars ‘Sensation® Florida127’ and ‘Florida Radiance’ attained the highest total yield in both seasons. There was an effect of the cropping system in the nematode community, which increased the bacterivores but drastically reduced omnivores and ring nematodes over time. No effect of cultivar was observed in plant-parasitic nematode populations. The cultivar ‘Winterstar™ FL 05-107’ was an exception since Meloidogyne javanica population densities were significantly higher in ‘Winterstar™ FL 05-107’s experimental plots. Overall, transplant steaming shows the potential to be a component of an integrated pest and disease management programme for the success of sustainable and profitable yields

Susceptibility of seven strawberry cultivars to Belonolaimus longicaudatus and interaction with Phytophthora cactorum

Summary Belonolaimus longicaudatus and Phytophthora cactorum are pathogens threatening Florida strawberry production. The interaction among these and cultivar susceptibility were assessed in this study. Cultivars ‘Sensation® Florida127’, ‘Florida Brilliance’, ‘Florida Radiance’, ‘Winterstar™ FL 05-107’, ‘Florida Elyana’, ‘Strawberry Festival’ and ‘Florida Beauty’ were used to conduct one trial using plug transplants and a second trial using bare-root transplants, which was repeated twice. A factorial combination of P. cactorum (+/−) and B. longicaudatus (+/−) inoculation was applied to evaluate strawberry cultivar resistance to P. cactorum and B. longicaudatus as well as their interaction. The effect of P. cactorum on the canopy, root length, and root and shoot weight was dependent on cultivars. For the plug transplant trial, the overall average of plant mortality among all tested strawberry cultivars was 0.1%, suggesting higher tolerance against P. cactorum when vigorous transplants were used. Conversely, the repeated bare-root transplant trial demonstrated different levels of susceptibility in strawberry cultivars when transplants were inoculated with P. cactorum. ‘Sweet Sensation’ ‘Florida127’, ‘Florida Brilliance’, ‘Florida Radiance’ and ‘Winterstar FL 05-107’ were highly susceptible, whereas ‘Florida Elyana’ and ‘Strawberry Festival’ were resistant. Moreover, ‘Florida Beauty’ was moderately resistant to P. cactorum. Our findings demonstrated the importance of using vigorous transplants to reduce P. cactorum damage. Sting nematode reproduction was suppressed when strawberry transplants were inoculated with P. cactorum, suggesting an antagonistic interaction between the pathogens. None of the cultivars was tolerant to B. longicaudatus as this nematode reproduced from 13.4- to 23.8-fold and caused root damage under glasshouse conditions.

A multi-omics framework reveals strawberry flavor genes and their regulatory elements.

Flavor is essential to consumer preference of foods and is an increasing focus of plant breeding programs. In fruit crops, identifying genes underlying volatile organic compounds has great promise to accelerate flavor improvement, but polyploidy and heterozygosity in many species have slowed progress. Here we use octoploid cultivated strawberry to demonstrate how genomic heterozygosity, transcriptomic intricacy and fruit metabolomic diversity can be treated as strengths and leveraged to uncover fruit flavor genes and their regulatory elements. Multi-omics datasets were generated including an expression quantitative trait loci map with 196 diverse breeding lines, haplotype-phased genomes of a highly-flavored breeding selection, a genome-wide structural variant map using five haplotypes, and volatile genome-wide association study (GWAS) with > 300 individuals. Overlaying regulatory elements, structural variants and GWAS-linked allele-specific expression of numerous genes to variation in volatile compounds important to flavor. In one example, the functional role of anthranilate synthase alpha subunit 1 in methyl anthranilate biosynthesis was supported via fruit transient gene expression assays. These results demonstrate a framework for flavor gene discovery in fruit crops and a pathway to molecular breeding of cultivars with complex and desirable flavor.

Strawberry Cultivar Trials for Yield and Fruit Quality in Subtropical Southern Florida

Strawberry (Fragaria ×ananassa) is grown during the winter months in subtropical southern Florida and must thrive in higher than average temperatures and limestone soils. This is the first strawberry cultivar trial in southern Florida to include ‘Florida Beauty’, ‘Florida Brilliance’, ‘Strawberry Festival’, ‘Florida Radiance’, ‘Sensation FL127’, and ‘Winterstar’. Overall, ‘Strawberry Festival’ and ‘Sensation FL127’ were the top yielding cultivars, with the highest average total yields of 0.7 and 0.8 kg/plant fresh fruit, respectively. ‘Sensation FL127’ had a 36% greater late-season marketable yield compared with ‘Strawberry Festival’. ‘Sensation FL127’ consistently had the greatest soluble solids content (7.6% to 8.7%). Overall, this study demonstrates significant differences in yield and fruit quality among the cultivars tested in southern Florida.

Evaluation of Low Chilling Strawberry (Fragraria ananassa) Varieties with Respect to Yield and Quality in Eastern Nepal

The experiment entitled “Evaluation of low chilling strawberry (Fragraria ananassa) varieties with respect to yield and quality in eastern Nepal” was conducted in Dharan and Biratnagar of Nepal with five varieties ‘EMCO 33’, ‘EMCO 32’, ‘Florida Fortuna’, ‘Florida Beauty’ and ‘Sweet Sensation’. The experiment was laid out in Factorial RCBD where variety and location were considered as factors. From the experiment, the highest number of fruits per plant (13.22) and maximum fruit set (95.72%) were recorded with the variety ‘EMCO 33’. However, the maximum number of fruits per plot (444.25) with only 14.04 % of unmarketable fruit and the highest yield of 9068.75 grams per plot with 7976.00 grams of marketable yield per plot was obtained with variety ‘EMCO 32’ in Dharan. Comparing the length and diameter of fruit variety ‘EMCO 32’ (49.00 cm×43.42 cm) and variety ‘EMCO 33’ (49.04 cm×38.41 cm) seems more appealing in form. pH, vitamin C, and TA content were found higher in variety ‘EMCO 33’ (3.48, 71.89 mg/g, and 0.90 % respectively) and higher TSS content (6.57 0 Brix) was obtained with variety ‘EMCO 32’ with no interaction effect for quality traits. Thus among treatment combinations variety ‘EMCO 32’ followed by ‘EMCO 33’ in Dharan conditions is preferable to other treatments and also both the varieties perform well compared to other varieties in Biratnagar conditions also. However, still more studies are required to assess the varietal performance and it would be premature to recommend a suitable variety for given locations.

Stakeholder-driven adaptive research (SDAR): better research products

AbstractRapid changes in economic, environmental and social conditions generate both problems and opportunities in agriculture. The cycle from problem identification through discovery of potential solutions is lengthy. The objective of this study was to use collaborative methods to speed the cycle of discovery in sustainable organic strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) production systems in the southeastern USA. This method, stakeholder-driven adaptive research (SDAR), combines farmers' experiential knowledge with scientists' experimental knowledge to develop rigorous research design collectively. Farmers evaluated our biological research and co-designed research experiments with scientists. Farmers and other stakeholders (1) evaluated on-station experiments individually and then made recommendations as a group, (2) served as advisory council members to direct our goals and objectives, and (3) conducted farmer field trials where they implemented aspects of our on-station experiments under their management regimes. The results eliminated potential solutions that were not feasible, ineffective or too costly for farmers to adopt. Key results included eliminating treatments using high tunnel systems altogether on one field trial on a University of Florida (UF) research facility, adding a leguminous cover crop mix treatment, adding companion planting, and eliminating strawberry cultivars Strawberry Festival and Florida Beauty from our research trials. Our proposed methodology allows farmers and other stakeholders to inform the biological research from design through dissemination to reduce the time needed to create research products in an era of rapid bio-physical, social and economic change. Accelerating the discovery cycle could significantly improve our ability to identify and address threats to the USA and global food and fiber production system.

Cultivar Selection Is an Effective and Economic Strategy for Managing Charcoal Rot of Strawberry in Florida.

Macrophomina phaseolina, the causal agent of charcoal rot, is a soilborne pathogen that affects strawberry crowns leading to plant wilt and collapse. Disease management involves a combination of physical, cultural, and chemical methods. Field trials were conducted for 10 consecutive Florida seasons (2010-11 to 2019-20) to determine the susceptibility of strawberry cultivars to charcoal rot and the effect of cultivar selection on disease and to estimate the economic impact of cultivar selection on disease management. Six cultivars grown commercially in Florida were chosen and grouped as highly susceptible (HS) ('Strawberry Festival' and 'Treasure'), susceptible (S) ('Florida Radiance' and 'Florida Beauty'), and moderately resistant (MR) (Sensation 'Florida127' and Winterstar 'FL05-107') according to their susceptibility levels. After a primary analysis of the individual trials, a network meta-analysis was conducted to estimate and compare the final disease incidence and the disease progress rate of each susceptibility group. The economic impact of charcoal rot on strawberry production and gross revenue was estimated based on plant production functions, weekly fruit prices, and disease progress over time with parameters obtained via the meta-analytical models. Disease incidence was reduced by 91.5 and 77.3%, respectively, when the MR and S cultivar groups were adopted instead of the HS group. There was a 62.5% reduction in the disease incidence when the MR group was used instead of the S group. Significant differences in disease progress rates were also observed when the MR and S groups were adopted instead of the HS group. Therefore, the adoption of more resistant cultivars is an effective strategy when incorporated into a charcoal rot integrated management program and can significantly impact growers' revenue by reducing disease incidence, preventing yield loss, and, consequently, minimizing economic losses.

The Effect of Summer Cover Crops and Strawberry Cultivars on the Twospotted Spider Mite, Tetranychus urticae (Acari: Tetranychidae) and the Predatory Mite, Neoseiulus californicus (Acari: Phytoseidae) in Organic Strawberry Production Systems in Florida.

The twospotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae (Koch) (Acari: Tetranychidae), is a key pest of strawberries and many other crops worldwide. Cover cropping, selecting tolerant or resistant cultivars, and biological control are important strategies of an organic management plan. In this study, we examined the effect of summer cover crops and strawberry cultivars on populations of T. urticae and a commercially available predatory mite, Neoseiulus californicus McGregor (Acari: Phytoseiidae), commonly used for T. urticae management in Florida. In the 2013-2014 season, four cover crops and eight strawberry cultivars were screened at the research station and on a commercial organic strawberry farm. The following season, the most promising cover crops (sunn hemp and hairy indigo) and cultivars, 'Sensation', 'Strawberry Festival', and 'Winterstar' were tested at the research station and on two small organic farms. In the 2016-2017, 2017-2018, and 2018-2019 seasons, a 4-way mix of cover crops was compared to sunn hemp and hairy indigo. In 2016-2017, 'Florida Radiance' was added to the three previously selected cultivars. 'Florida Beauty' replaced 'Strawberry Festival' in 2017-2018 and 2018-2019, and 'Florida Brilliance' replaced 'Winterstar' in 2018-2019. The effects of summer cover crops on both T. urticae and N. californicus were minimal. 'Florida Brilliance', 'Florida Radiance', 'Sensation', 'Strawberry Festival', and 'Winterstar' had lower T. urticae populations and higher yields in most seasons at most locations. The establishment and abundance of N. californicus was similar on these cultivars and was generally higher where T. urticae populations were higher. Implications for organic strawberry production in Florida are discussed.

Improving Strawberry Yield Prediction by Integrating Ground-Based Canopy Images in Modeling Approaches

Strawberries (Fragaria × ananassa Duch.) are highly perishable fruit. Timely prediction of yield is crucial for labor management and marketing decision-making. This study demonstrates the use of high-resolution ground-based imagery, in addition to previous yield and weather information, for yield prediction throughout the season at different intervals (3–4 days, 1 week, and 3 weeks pre-harvest). Flower and fruit counts, yield, and high-resolution imagery data were collected 31 times for two cultivars (‘Florida Radiance’ and ‘Florida Beauty’) throughout the growing season. Orthorectified mosaics and digital surface models were created to extract canopy size variables (canopy area, average canopy height, canopy height standard deviation, and canopy volume) and visually count flower and fruit number. Data collected at the plot level (6 plots per cultivar, 24 plants per plot) were used to develop prediction models. Using image-based counts and canopy variables, flower and fruit counts were predicted with percentage prediction errors of 26.3% and 25.7%, respectively. Furthermore, by adding image-derived variables to the models, the accuracy of predicting out-of-sample yields at different time intervals was increased by 10–29% compared to those models without image-derived variables. These results suggest that close-range high-resolution images can contribute to yield prediction and could assist the industry with decision making by changing growers’ prediction practices.

High Efficacy and Low Risk of Phytotoxicity of Sulfur in the Suppression of Strawberry Powdery Mildew

Sulfur is a multisite inhibitor of strawberry powdery mildew (Podosphaera aphanis) recommended for fungicide resistance management, yet growers may refrain from its use due to purported phytotoxicity under conditions often qualitatively defined as “hot”, or “during periods of high temperature”. Our objectives were to (i) determine phytotoxicity of sulfur on three strawberry cultivars treated in controlled environments at temperatures of 30, 35, and 40°C for periods of 1, 2, 4, and 8 h after the sulfur application; and (ii) evaluate phytotoxicity and efficacy of sulfur on strawberry grown in open fields and high tunnels in Florida. Under controlled conditions, cultivars Florida127 and Florida Beauty exhibited minor phytotoxicity when exposed to sulfur at 30°C for 2 to 8 h. Cultivar Florida Radiance, however, was more sensitive, with greater phytotoxicity as exposure time increased. We found that weekly applications of sulfur on cultivar Florida127 significantly reduced P. aphanis foliar and fruit disease as well as or better than the standard fungicide treatment, and resulted in 80 to 300% higher yields (compared with nontreated controls) in open field and high tunnel trials, respectively. Ambient temperature did not exceed 35°C in open field trials, where no phytotoxicity was observed. In the high tunnel, where only mild leaf phytotoxicity was observed, temperatures exceeded 40°C for a total of 20 h across 9 days. Our results suggest that sulfur has benefits for disease suppression and fungicide resistance management that greatly surpass the minimal phytotoxicity observed only at temperatures above 35°C for a period of at least 2 h.

What Will Florida Strawberry Varieties Look like in the Future? A Breeder’s Perspective

ABSTRACT A recent economic analysis predicted that the distribution of strawberry production in Florida that would maximize profit is very different from the current production distribution. An earlier start to the season in mid-November, peak production in early December and steadily decreasing production thereafter is predicted to create an improved balance of price and volume throughout the Florida market window. We propose that a combination of early short-day cultivars and low-chill day-neutral cultivars will help achieve this goal. Short-day varieties such as ‘Florida Brilliance’ produce earlier than previous varieties such as ‘Strawberry Festival’ and ‘Florida Radiance.’ Meanwhile, day-neutral varieties such as ‘Florida Beauty’ require more management but can be planted early and begin producing in mid-November with steady yields thereafter. All future varieties must have increased levels of fruit quality to drive market demand.

Sources of Inoculum and Survival of Macrophomina phaseolina in Florida Strawberry Fields.

Macrophomina phaseolina, the causal agent of charcoal rot, affects strawberry crowns, inducing plant collapse. The fungus survives in the soil through the production of microsclerotia and is usually controlled by preplant fumigation of soil. However, in the 2016 to 2017 Florida strawberry season, even after soil fumigation, about 30% plant mortality still occurred in plastic-covered beds that were used for a second season and where crop residue (mainly old strawberry crowns) was disposed of between beds. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine if M. phaseolina can survive on strawberry debris over summer in Florida and if so, verify whether strawberry debris might act as a source of inoculum for new transplants. Crowns from the previous season were collected from commercial farms where charcoal rot had been reported, and M. phaseolina was recovered from all samples. In a research field, infected crowns were buried in the soil at different depths and retrieved every 2 weeks during the summer. After 8 weeks, M. phaseolina could be recovered at all depths. Moreover, inoculation of strawberry plants by drenching the soil, dipping roots, or spraying leaves with a M. phaseolina microsclerotial suspension from pure cultures or infected crowns produced symptoms with differences in incubation periods depending on cultivar susceptibility. Furthermore, infected crowns disposed of in the aisles between beds or buried next to new transplants of cultivars Strawberry Festival, Florida Beauty, and Winterstar induced charcoal rot, with the level of aggressiveness depending on the cultivar susceptibility and inoculum placement in the field.

Metalized-striped Plastic Mulch Reduces Root-zone Temperatures during Establishment and Increases Early-season Yields of Annual Winter Strawberry

Black plastic mulch is used predominantly for winter strawberry (Fragaria ×ananassa Duch.) production in Florida because of its warming effects. However, black plastic mulch can increase heat stress during establishment, especially when growers advance planting dates (e.g., late September) to improve earliness. Consequently, we designed a new plastic mulch film that has a metalized center stripe with black shoulders. We hypothesized that metalized-striped mulch can minimize heat stress during establishment, while maintaining the warming effects of black mulch during winter. We conducted field trials over two seasons to evaluate black mulch, fully metalized mulch, and metalized-striped mulch using two cultivars differing in heat stress tolerance and fruit production patterns: ‘Florida Radiance’ and ‘Florida Beauty’. The effect of plastic mulch type on plant growth and yield was generally consistent across both seasons. Compared with black mulch, metalized-striped mulch reduced afternoon root-zone temperature (RZT) by up to 3.1 °C and reduced the duration of heat stress conditions (RZT > 30 °C) by 119 hours across October and November, but exhibited equivalent soil warming during winter. Yield increases by metalized-striped mulch compared with black mulch ranged from 19% to 34% in the early season (November–January), 6% to 20% in the late season (February–March), and 12% to 26% over the entire season. Statistical significance was detected for the 2016–17 early-season yield and when yield data were expressed on a weekly basis. Compared with black mulch, metalized-striped mulch improved fruit number significantly without affecting fruit weight or canopy area, suggesting that heat stress on black mulch negatively affects flower and fruit development more than plant growth. Weekly fruit yield data indicate that metalized-striped mulch can produce greater yields than fully metalized mulch. Metalized-striped mulch is an easily implementable strategy for reducing establishment heat stress and improving fruit earliness in subtropical winter strawberry production regions.

'Florida Brilliance' Strawberry

‘Florida Brilliance’ (PPAF) is a new short-day strawberry cultivar released by the University of Florida and commercialized in 2018. This cultivar was originally evaluated as breeding selection FL 13.26-134. It originated from a 2013 cross between breeding selection FL 11.31-14 (female parent) and selection FL 10-153 (male parent). ‘Florida Brilliance’ has been tested over several years at the University of Florida Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC) in Wimauma, FL, at the Florida Strawberry Growers Association (FSGA) headquarters in Dover, FL, and on several commercial farms.
 The target audience of this publication is strawberry growers in West-Central Florida, with nursery growers as a secondary audience. Its main purpose is to describe important attributes of ‘Florida Brilliance’ and make management recommendations that will help growers obtain optimum performance from this cultivar. Comparisons are made to ‘Florida Radiance’ (Chandler et al. 2009) (marketed as ‘Florida Fortuna’ outside the U.S. and Canada), Sweet Sensation® ‘Florida127’ (Whitaker et al. 2015) (hereafter referred to as ‘Florida127’) and ‘Florida Beauty’ (Whitaker et al. 2017).

White-striped plastic mulch reduces root-zone temperatures during establishment and increases early season yields of annual winter strawberry

Early-season yields are critical to winter strawberry (Fragaria ×ananassa Duch.) production in Florida and other winter and spring production regions around the world. Although advancing planting dates is a common practice to improve earliness, it can increase heat stress during establishment, especially on black plastic mulch. This problem could be addressed by adding a white center stripe to black plastic mulch. The white center stripe should cool the root zone during establishment while the black bed shoulders remain exposed to the sun to warm the soil during the winter. We conducted three field trials across two seasons to compare black plastic mulch (black mulch) to black plastic mulch with a white center stripe (white-striped mulch) using three cultivars (Florida Radiance, Florida Beauty, and Florida Brilliance). Bare-root transplants were planted on 26 Sept. in 2015 and 29 Sept. and 17 Oct. in 2016. Compared to black mulch, white-striped mulch reduced root-zone temperatures (10-cm depth) under the white stripe by up to 4.5 °C in November, while maintaining the same soil warming capacity on the bed shoulders throughout the growing season. White-striped mulch treatments resulted in increased growth, earliness, and yields, although the magnitude of improvement depended on cultivars and seasonal weather conditions. Early-season ambient temperatures were unusually high in the 2015–16 trial and the 2016–17 later-planted trial. In these two trials, white-striped mulch increased early yields by 20%–31% across cultivars. In the 2015–16 trial, white-striped mulch also increased canopy area by 11% during the early harvest period and root biomass by 26% at the end of the trial. Because late-season yields were unaffected in all trials, white-striped mulch only improved total yields for the second planting of 2016–17. By contrast, cultivar-specific effects were only observed for the first planting of 2016–17, in which white-striped mulch improved early and total yields of ‘Florida Radiance’ by 46% and 28%, respectively, compared to black mulch. Our results suggest that white-striped mulch is an easily implementable strategy for improving earliness of winter strawberry production in warm climates.

‘Florida Beauty’ Strawberry

‘Florida Beauty’ (PPAF) is a new strawberry cultivar released by the University of Florida and commercialized in 2017. This cultivar was originally evaluated as breeding selection FL 12.121-5. ‘Florida Beauty’ originated from a 2012 cross between Queensland Australia selection 2010-119 (female parent) and ‘Florida Radiance’ (male parent). It has been tested over several years in field plots at the University of Florida Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC) in Wimauma, FL, at the Florida Strawberry Growers Association (FSGA) headquarters in Dover, FL, and on several commercial farms. Data from these trials have been used to generate the following information and recommendations to help growers obtain optimum performance of this cultivar in west-central Florida. Comparisons are made to the current industry standard cultivars ‘Florida Radiance’ (Chandler et al. 2009) and Sweet Sensation® ‘Florida127’ (Whitaker et al. 2015) (hereafter referred to as ‘Florida127’).

‘Florida Beauty’ Strawberry

The leading strawberry (Fragaria ×ananassa) cultivar grown in Florida is currently ‘Florida Radiance’ (Chandler et al., 2009; U.S. Patent PP20,363) which was commercialized in 2009 and by the 2015–16 season, accounted for ≈70% of the acreage in west-central Florida. This cultivar is preferred for its early and total yields, its uniformly shaped and attractive fruit, and its open plant architecture and long pedicels which allow efficient harvesting. Sweet Sensation® ‘Florida127’ (Whitaker et al., 2015; hereafter referred to as ‘Florida127’; U.S. Patent PP25,574) is currently the second leading cultivar with ≈20% of acreage in 2016–17. This cultivar is preferred for its combination of high yields, large fruit size, excellent eating quality, and long shelf life. However, neither of these current commercial standards are well adapted for early transplanting dates in west-central Florida. High temperatures during transplanting tend to reduce early yields of ‘Florida Radiance’ and cause elongated fruit, which may be unmarketable, and ‘Florida127’ often becomes too vegetative when exposed to high temperatures. The planting window in west-central Florida has shifted earlier in recent years in an attempt to produce higher yields in late November and December when market prices are highest (Wu et al., 2015). There is currently a need for additional cultivars with uniformly shaped fruit and harvesting efficiency similar to ‘Florida Radiance’ and flavor characteristics similar to ‘Florida127’. There is also a need for cultivars that are adapted to early planting, between 25 Sept. and 1 Oct., when environmental conditions in west-central Florida are hot and unfavorable for flower initiation and ideal fruit shape. ‘Florida Beauty’ strawberry is the product of a collaborative breeding effort between the University of Florida and the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries. It has demonstrated adaptation to early planting, maintaining excellent fruit quality, and a yield distribution that complements current commercial standards. Experimental trials have been conducted under the direction of the University of Florida on the research plots of the Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC) (Balm, FL), at the Florida Strawberry Growers Association (FSGA) headquarters in Dover, FL, and on several farms in west-central Florida and Southern Spain.

Regeneration of Dracaena surculosa Through Indirect Shoot Organogenesis

This study established a method of regenerating Dracaena surculosa Lindl. ‘Florida Beauty’ through indirect shoot organogenesis. Bud, leaf, and stem explants were cultured on a Murashige and Skoog basal medium supplemented with N6-(2-isopentyl) adenine (2iP) at 12.3 and 24.6 μM with 3-indoleacetic acid (IAA) at 0, 1.1, and 2.3 μM, respectively, and 2iP at 36.9, 49.2, 61.5, and 73.8 μM with IAA at 1.1 and 2.3 μM, respectively. Calluses were induced from leaf explants but failed to produce adventitious shoots. Calluses were also induced from stem and bud explants cultured on the basal medium containing 12.3 μM 2iP and 2.3 μM IAA, 24.6 μM 2iP or higher with either 1.1 or 2.3 μM IAA. The highest callus induction frequency was 63.2% from stem explants and 69.6% from bud explants when they were cultured on the basal medium supplemented with 49.2 μM 2iP and 2.3 μM IAA. The highest shoot formation frequency was 65.7% from stem-derived callus cultured on the basal medium containing 61.5 μM 2iP and 1.1 μM IAA and 88% from bud-derived callus cultured with 49.2 μM 2iP and 1.1 μM IAA. The highest number of shoots per piece of stem- and bud-derived calluses was 3.8 and 6.7, respectively. Adventitious shoots developed better root systems in the basal medium supplemented with 2.0 μM IAA. Plantlets after transplantation into a soilless substrate grew vigorously in a shaded greenhouse under a maximum photosynthetic photon flux density of 300 μmol·m−2·s−1. Neither disease incidence nor somaclonal variants were observed in the regenerated population. This established method could be used for efficient micropropagation of D. surculosa, and the availability of tissue-cultured liners could reduce the dependency on imported cuttings, which often bring new or invasive pests into the United States.