Large Fruit Size Research Articles

A Review on Terminalia chebula Retz. (Harar)- An Important Multipurpose Tree

Terminalia chebula Retz. commonly known as ‘Harar’ belongs to the family Combretaceae. It is found in deciduous forests throughout the greater part of India, China, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Bangladesh, etc. In India, it is distributed throughout the greater part except in arid zones. The fruits are common constituent of ‘Triphala’, capable of imparting youthful vitality and receptivity of mind and sense and are extensively used for clinical research, tanning and furniture purposes and also contain 1.73% nitrogen and 2.75% Calcium. The demand for its fruit has increased tremendously, because of its medicinal value; its fruits are sold at a price of ` 10-60 kg-1. However, the poor germination capacity, lack of natural regeneration and knowledge regarding its propagation are the limiting factors for its adoption in agroforestry systems. There is need of more productive planting stock with lower juvenile period and comparatively large fruit size.

Fruit quality of west indian cherry irrigated with saline waters under combinations of nitrogen/potassium fertilization

West Indian cherry stands out among the fruits cultivated for the pharmacological and alimentary importance, but its quality can be affected by irrigation water salinity and fertilization management. In this context, this research aimed to study the effect of irrigation water of different salinities and combinations of nitrogen and potassium fertilization on the physical and physico-chemical quality of bioactive compounds in West Indian cherry fruits. The experiment was carried out in the field, using lysimeters of 60 L, in the Experimental Area of the Centro de Ciências e Tecnologia Agroalimentar (CCTA) of Universidade Federal de Campina Grande (UFCG), Pombal, PB, in a randomized block design, with treatments arranged in a 5 x 4 factorial scheme, referring to five irrigation water salinities (ECw): 0.3, 1.3, 2.3, 3.3 and 4.3 dS m-1 and four combinations (C) of doses of nitrogen (N) and potassium (K2O): C1 = 70% N + 50% K2O; C2 = 100% N + 75% K2O; C3 = 130% N + 100% K2O and C4 = 160% N + 125% K2O, of the recommended dose for West Indian cherry, with three replicates and one plant per plot consisting of a lysimeter. The cv. Flor Branca grafted on cv. Junco was used in the study. The increase in salinity of irrigation water reduced the size, weight and vitamin C content of the fruits, but, the combinations of N and K fertilization did not affect fruit shape and the content of anthocyanin, carotenoids, pH, titratable acidity, total soluble solids and fruit flavor. Fertilization combinations consisting of C1 and C2 treatments promoted the largest fruit size under irrigation with ECw of up to 1.3 dS m-1 and greater mass accumulation. Fertilization doses above C2 combinations negatively affected fruit quality.

Sweet Cherry Fruit Characteristic in Covered Orchards

Abstract The aim of evaluations performed in experimental plantings of the Research and Breeding Institute of Pomology Holovousy Ltd. was to verify the effect of covering systems on fruit characteristics – size, weight, firmness and soluble solids content (SSC). The research was focused on evaluation of fruit characteristics in 2017 and 2018 on fourteen cultivars: ´Amid´, ´Cristiana´, ´Early Korvik´, ´Elza´, ´Fabiola´, ´Felicita´, Horka´, ´Justyna´, ´Kasandra´, ´Kordia´, ´Korvik´, ´Tamara´, ´Těchlovan´ and ´Vanda´. The tested cultivars were grown in an IPM irrigated covered orchard. The largest fruit size was recorded for the cultivar ´Tamara‘ with 29.5 mm followed by the cultivar ´Horka‘ with 29 mm and ´Felicita´ with 28.6 mm. The greatest weight was recorded for the cultivar ´Tamara‘ with 12.4 g followed by ´Felicita´ with 12.3 g. The greatest firmness was recorded in fruits of the cultivar ´Amid´ with index 77.5 and ´Tamara´ with index 73.2. High correlation between fruit characteristics was found only between weight and size of fruits (correlation coefficient 0.88). High differences were recorded between years. In 2017, fruits characteristics were higher (size 27.5 mm, weight 10.9 g, firmness 65.3, SSC 19.3 °Brix) while in 2018, fruit characteristics were lower (size 26.5 mm, weight 9.2 g, firmness 59.2, SSC 16.5 °Brix).

Impact of Nitrogen Fertilizer on Yield and Associated Revenues in No-tillage Pumpkin

The use of no tillage (NT) integrated with cover cropping is a management practice that is becoming more popular with commercial ‘jack-o-lantern’ pumpkin (Cucurbita pepo) growers in the eastern and midwestern United States, although little is known about nitrogen (N) fertilizer requirements for this production system. A field study was established at the Southern Illinois University Horticulture Research Center in Carbondale to evaluate the yield response of pumpkin and associated revenues to N fertilization in a NT production system after wheat (Triticum aestivum) harvest. Nitrogen application rate affected pumpkin leaf chlorophyll content, and resulting yields and revenues. At all sampling dates, pumpkin fertilized with 224 kg·ha−1 N had the greatest leaf chlorophyll content. Quadratic relationships best described pumpkin fruit size and diameter increase with N rates from 0 to 224 kg·ha−1. Furthermore, pumpkin fruit number and weight per hectare also increased in a quadratic manner, as N application rates increased from 0 to 224 kg·ha−1. The application of 168 kg·ha−1 N also provided high yields and large fruit sizes, although quadratic models indicated that maximum net revenues for NT pumpkins were achieved with 224 kg·ha−1 N. Growers applying 224 kg·ha−1 N would increase net revenues by ≈54%, 52%, and 51% at pumpkin fruit price points of $0.33, $0.44, $0.55 per kg, respectively, compared with 0 kg·ha−1 N fertilization. An additional 123 kg·ha−1 N from fertilizer was required for NT pumpkin production after wheat harvest in fields with high amounts of cereal straw residues on the soil surface compared with the 101 kg·ha−1 N recommended for conventional tillage systems with no cover crop residues. This study suggests that N fertilizer investments will provide significant monetary returns in NT pumpkin systems. However, the 168 kg·ha−1 N rate provided the highest return on fertilizer investment at all pumpkin pricing points compared with all other N rates evaluated. Additionally, pumpkins grown in NT systems using a winter grain crop that is ended at flowering should require similar N amounts, because little N is used during heading and grain ripening. Although growers often look for ways to reduce input costs in vegetable production systems, N fertilization is clearly an important investment that provides increased yields and revenues in NT pumpkins. The results of this study should provide additional information to establish N fertilizer recommendations for NT pumpkin production.

Plant Domestication: Reconstructing the Route toModern Tomatoes.

An explosion of genome sequencing has facilitated a deep understanding of the tomato's domestication history. Although the species emerged in Ecuador, domestication is likely to have occurred in Mexico whence it was transported to Europe and ultimately improved into one of our favorite foods.

The Impact of New Blossom Thinners and Hand-thinned on Fruit Quality and Quantity in Peach cv. Alberta and Nectarine cv. Sun King

ABSTRACT Thinning is essential and important for the quality of peach and nectarine crops because of its impact on fruit size and next season’s flower bud initiation, but hand-thinning is a costly practice and an unacceptable alternative. Researchers have been trying to introduce new thinners for almost thirty years, replacing hand-thinning. In this study, the quantitative and qualitative effects of some compounds used as thinning agents were examined on the ‘Alberta’ peaches and the ‘Sun King’ nectarines. This study has been carried out in a commercial orchard in Semirom, Isfahan, Iran during 2015–2016. Treatments included lime-sulfur (6%, 8% and double application of 6%), 10 mL L−1 fish oil, ammonium thiosulfate (20, 25 mL L−1and double application of 20 mL L−1), the plant growth regulator Apogee (300, 450 mg L−1 and double application of 300 mg L−1), hand-thinning of flowers (at full bloom) and hand-thinning of fruits (at pit hardening). The temperature at the application time of treatments on peach and nectarine trees was above 15°C and the sky was sunny. Results showed that all of the treatments, except for 300 and 450 mg L−1 Apogee significantly thinned the fruit to 61%. The treatments increased fruit weight (42%), volume (46%), total soluble solids (TSS) (28%), TSS/titratable acidity (TA) ratio (47%) and color (37%) as compared to control. However, there were no significant differences in TA of fruits among the samples. In terms of yield, various treatments differed significantly. The highest yield for Alberta peach was achieved by the control (123 kg/tree) and the lowest yield was obtained for the single application of 20 mL L−1 ammonium thiosulfate (85.41 kg/tree). In ‘Alberta’ peaches, the biggest fruit (125 cm3) was observed with the double application of 20 mL L−1 ammonium thiosulfate and fruit-thinning by 114 cm3. Double application of these chemicals often resulted in more blossom thinning than a single application. The blossoms and fruits were hand-thinned by 120 cm3 and 116 cm3, respectively. Double applications of 6% lime-sulfur and 10 mL L−1 fish oil gave the largest fruit size (115 cm3) of ‘Sun King’ nectarines. Trees under fruit and blossom-thinning, ammonium thiosulfate and lime-sulfur treatments showed the good return blossom in the second year.

Impact of Irrigation with Saline Water on the Production of Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) under Soilless and Traditional Techniques

A greenhouse experiment was carried out to evaluate the response of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) to saline water irrigation under soilless and traditional techniques. A special fertigation technique with two different salinity levels (1 dS m-1 and 4 dS m-1) of water was used under different soilless media, namely, perlite, gravel, and pozzolana as inert media, in addition to traditional techniques. Results showed that among the three soilless substrates, perlite medium produced the highest total yields with larger fruit sizes. Furthermore, the perlite medium enabled significant savings in water, compared to gravel (-15%) and pozzolana (-20%). Moreover, the results corroborated the existing knowledge on the tolerance of tomato to brackish water irrigation, since there was no significant difference in yield of plants grown in the soil irrigated with water with salinity levels of 1.1 dSm-1 and 4-5 dS m-1. Plant biometric data revealed a better and quicker development of plants grown in the soilless media compared to those grown in the soil, even in the case of freshwater irrigation.

Physichochemical properties of Kebumen Entog Dwarf coconut

Kebumen Entog Dwarf coconut is one of the superior coconut varieties with characteristics of early bearing, large fruit size and sweet water. The study was conducted to determine the physicochemical properties of fruit and water of Kebumen Entog Dwarf coconut. Evaluation was carried out to measure the mineral content of coconut water, water content, ash, protein, and fat, the content of fatty acids and amino acids of fruit flesh. The fruits of Nias Yellow Dwarf, Mapanget Tall, Tenga Tall and KHINA-1 Hybrid were also evaluated. The analysis was carried out at the Laboratory of PT. Saraswati Indo Genetech, Bogor. The results showed that potassium and phosphorus content in water of young nut of Kebumen Entog Dwarf coconut fruit were higher than these in Nias Yellow Dwarf. The young kernel contained of 49.52% fat, 3.94% moisture, 3.78% ash, and 7.64% protein. The mature kernel of Kebumen Entog Dwarf contained of 63.20% fat, 5.9% moisture, 1.72% ash, and 5.24% protein. The medium chain fatty acids (caproic, caprilic, capric and lauric acids) in young and mature nuts was 43.12% and 51.07%, respectively. Fifteen types of amino acids in kernel of mature kernel was also detected. Dominant amino acids in coconut flesh were glutamic acid (1.28%), arginine (0.71%) and aspartic acid 0.45%.

Branched Secondary Alcohol Ethoxylate, Ammonium Thiosulfate, Calcium Polysulfides-Thiosulfate, and Fish Oil Effects on Blossom Thinning, Fruit Set and Quality of Peaches and Nectarines

Total crop load has an inverse relationship with fruit size, while larger fruit size is often demanded by the peach and nectarine markets. Hand-thinning is extremely expensive, and thus, crop load adjustment, using blossom thinners is a crucial practice to ensure production of commercially acceptable fruit size and yield efficiency in stone fruit. In this study, the influence of branched secondary alcohol ethoxylate (Tergitol TMN-6) and/or ammonium thiosulfate (ATS), Crocker Fish Oil (FO), and a mixture of calcium polysulfides and thiosulfate (lime sulfur) on fruit set and quality attributes in peaches (Prunus persica) and nectarines (P. persica var. nectarina) were studied. All blossom thinners reduced fruit set in “Summer Lady” peach in both 2016 and 2017. Fruit sets in “Summer Lady” peach trees with a double application of Tergitol TMN-6 at the rate of 7.5 or 10 mL ·Lˉ1, each rate applied at 40% and 80% bloom, were lower than those receiving the same rates of this chemical only at 80% bloom, but they were similar to those receiving a single Tergitol TMN-6 spray at 15 mL·Lˉ1 at 80% or 100% bloom. “Summer Lady” peach trees receiving FO at 20 mL·Lˉ1 plus lime sulfur at 25 mL·Lˉ1, once at 40% bloom and again at 80% bloom had lower fruit set as compared to Untreated Control but the fruit set was higher than those with any Tergitol-TMN-6 spray. Tergitol TMN-6 at 12 m·Lˉ1 at 100% bloom or 10 mL·Lˉ1 all stages of bloom reduced fruit set in “Zee Lady” and “Snow Giant” peaches. In “Snow Giant” peach, trees receiving Tergitol TMN-6 at all concentrations and blossom stages had significantly higher fruit weight as compared to the trees of Un-treated Control. Applications of Tergitol TMN-6 at all concentrations at 80% bloom reduced fruit set in “Red Globe” and “Elberta” peaches in Utah. ATS and FO slightly reduced fruit set in peaches but they were less effective than Tergitol TMN-6 in all cases. Overall, it is concluded that efficacy of blossom thinners depends on the rate of thinners, temperature, cultivar and stage of bloom development.

Characterization of Wild Apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) Genotypes Selected from Cappadocia Region (Nevşehir-Turkey) by SSR Markers

Cappadocia region of Anatolia hosts the third largest wild apricot population in Turkey. The objective of the study was to characterize 44 wild apricot genotypes selected from Cappadocia Region (Nevşehir-Turkey) as prominent with their late flowering, resistance to spring late frosts, large fruit sizes and/or late fruit ripening characteristics and 5 reference apricot cultivars (‘Hacıhaliloğlu’, ‘Kabaaşı’, ‘Hasanbey’, ‘Aprikoz’ and ‘Levent’) with SSR (simple sequence repeats) markers. A total of 16 SSR primers were used and 13 of them were successfully amplified. Total number of alleles was 107, average number of alleles was 8.23; average He and Ho values were 0.722 and 0.669, respectively. Polymorphism information content (PIC) values varied between 0.471 and 0.845. There was a quite high genetic diversity among wild apricot genotypes that genetic similarity values varied between 12 and 96%. Homonymous and synonymous genotypes were not encountered.

The wax gourd genomes offer insights into the genetic diversity and ancestral cucurbit karyotype

The botanical family Cucurbitaceae includes a variety of fruit crops with global or local economic importance. How their genomes evolve and the genetic basis of diversity remain largely unexplored. In this study, we sequence the genome of the wax gourd (Benincasa hispida), which bears giant fruit up to 80 cm in length and weighing over 20 kg. Comparative analyses of six cucurbit genomes reveal that the wax gourd genome represents the most ancestral karyotype, with the predicted ancestral genome having 15 proto-chromosomes. We also resequence 146 lines of diverse germplasm and build a variation map consisting of 16 million variations. Combining population genetics and linkage mapping, we identify a number of regions/genes potentially selected during domestication and improvement, some of which likely contribute to the large fruit size in wax gourds. Our analyses of these data help to understand genome evolution and function in cucurbits.

Morphological variation of bael fruits (<em>Aegle marmelos</em> (L.) Corrêa) among five accessions in three different agro-ecological regions of Sri Lanka

Bael fruit pulp possesses delicious taste with pleasing aroma and exhibit important pharmacological attributes such as hepato-protective and anti-cancerous properties. Although, bael is popular among the general public, it is considered as an underutilized fruit species in Sri Lanka. The Fruit Research and Development Institute of Sri Lanka has identified five superior bael Accessions (Beheth Beli, Paragammana, Mawanella, Rambukkana and Polonnaruwa Supun) from diverse agro-ecological zones. In the present study, morphological diversity of the ripened fruits harvested from the five selected bael Accessions was investigated in three fruiting seasons in 2015-2017. The fruit weight, length, width, inner diameter, number of seeds, shell thickness, fruit color according to Munsell Color Chart, L*, a*, b*, Chroma and Hue angle were measured and the data were statistically analyzed. The mean fruit weight was significantly high in Polonnaruwa Supun (951.86 g) followed by Rambukkana (669.14 g) and Mawanella (310.70 g) (p<0.05). The accessions Beheth Beli and Paragammana had the lowest fruit sizes 138.29 g and 158.09 g, respectively (p<0.05). Mean number of seeds were lowest in Polonnaruwa Supun (20 per fruit) and highest in the accessions Mawanella (60.33) and Rambukkana (60 per fruit) (p<0.05). The growing season has no effect either on size of fruits or number of seeds present. Three clear clusters could be identified based on fruit size, in which Polonnaruwa Supun and Rambukkana with 83.2% similarity clustered together and Beheth Beli and Paragammana with 94.4% similarity clustered together. The accession Mawanella was separated from the rest. The shell colour was not variable among the five accessions however; flesh colour of Rambukkana was the darkest with the highest significant Chroma. The accession Polonnaruwa Supun could be considered as the best fruit type with the largest fruit size, least number of miniature seeds and appealing flesh colour for consumption as a fresh fruit, while Rambukkana fruits can be considered as the best for processing due to its flesh colour.

Comparative analysis of fruit characters and nutritional quality between five blackberry (RubusL.) hybrid strains and their parents

In order to provide a scientific basis for breeding new blackberry (Rubus L.) cultivars in China, this paper analyzed the indexes of fruit characters and nutritional quality for five primary selected hybrid strains (5-8-2, 6-6-3, 7-7-4, 7-10-2 and 7-10-6) as well as their parent cultivars grown in Nanjing China. The result showed that 6-6-3 had the largest fruit size with average fruit weight of 7.89 g and biggest fruit weight of 14.58 g, and was intermediate compared with that of its parents. Its aggregate fruit with larger seeds contained the largest number of small fruits, which showed significant over-parents heterosis. The fruit size of 7-7-4 and 7-10-2 were the smallest, lower than that of their parents. 5-8-2 had the highest yield, which was 3.37 kg plant‑1. 5-8-2, 6-6-3 and 7-10-6 had higher soluble solids content (SSC) than the others. The total acid content (TAC) of 5-8-2 fruit was the lowest, which was only 1.08%. Thus, 5-8-2 with higher SSC/TAC was sweeter. Besides, the SSC, TAC and SSC/TAC of 6-6-3 showed over-parents heterosis significantly. Our result suggested that the fruit characters and nutritional quality of 5-8-2 and 6-6-3 were better than 7-7-4, 7-10-2 and 7-10-6and also inherited the characteristics of their parents, can be used as germplasm resources for further study.

EVALUATION OF SELF-FERTILITY IN BLACK CURRANT CULTIVARS IN THE NORTHWEST OF RUSSIA

Background. High yield is one of the main requirements for modern black currant cultivars. It depends on many factors, but is always linked to self-fertility. Highly selffertile cultivars are of particular importance in areas with unfavorable weather conditions during flowering, because they are able to provide high yields even in single-cultivar plantings. In this regard, it is very important to study selffertility of cultivars in order to identify those with the highest level of this character for use in breeding and large-scale cultivation.Materials and methods. The study of selffertility was carried out at Pushkin and Pavlovsk Laboratories of VIR in 2014–2017. Fifty-seven black currant cultivars of different genetic and ecogeographic origin were the material of the research. The degree of self-fertility was measured by conventional techniques in 3 variants of pollination: 1) natural self-pollination; 2) artificial self-pollination; and 3) free pollination. Statistical data processing was performed using Microsoft Excel and the guidelines by B. A. Dospekhov.Results and conclusions. Highly self-fertile cultivars were identified, which may be recommended for breeders as sources of this trait: ‘Navlya’ (k-42228), ‘Dobrynya’ (k-42121), ‘Golubichka’ (k-32624), ‘Golosievsky velikan’ (k-44176), ‘Valentina’ (k-15631A), ‘Kozatskaya’ (k-44187), ‘Arapka’ (к-44175), ‘Kanakhama’ (k-44197) and ‘Fat’ (k-42509). High yield in the Northwest of Russia can be secured by cultivars that combine high self-fertility with large fruit size: ‘Valentina’ (k-15631A), ‘Vernisazh’ (k-43126), ‘Garmoniya’ (k-40677), ‘Dobrynya’ (k-42121), ‘Desertnaya Ogoltsovoy’(k-45670), ‘Joninai’ (k-43124), ‘Kanakhama’ (k-44197), ‘Karri (k-44172), ‘Mila’ (k-40673), ‘Sevchanka’(k-45551), ‘Sofievskaya’(k-43131), ‘Talisman’ (k-44183), ‘Yubileinaya Kopanya’ (k-44189), ‘Shalunya’(k-41988), and accession 2780-20-33 (k-15575A). It is shown that free pollination and artificial self-pollinationprovide a positive impact on the fruit setting level, fruit weight and seed productivity. Natural autogamy, on the contrary, tends to decrease the weight of berries and the number of seeds in them.

‘Red Rhapsody’ Strawberry

Queensland’s winter strawberry (Fragaria ×ananassa Duch.) industry would benefit by having an early ripening, more profitable cultivar to replace current cultivars. ‘Strawberry Festival’ (Chandler et al., 2000) and, more recently, ‘Florida Radiance’ (Chandler et al., 2009) were introduced to Queensland and rapidly became major early-season cultivars with fruit and plant attributes desirable to growers. ‘Florida Radiance’ is marketed in Australia as ‘Florida Fortuna’. The average fruit size of ‘Strawberry Festival’ is less than ‘Florida Radiance’, but the latter is more difficult to establish in the field. Numerous plant losses sometimes occur, especially when demand for early supply of runners results in premature digging and lower quality runners. The commercial desirability of strawberry cultivars for producers, distributors, retailers, and consumers depends on many traits. Supply volumes influence market prices and profitability to the producer. Producer profitability is a key need for a stable production system. Herrington et al., (2012) analyzed the production and marketing system in Queensland in relation to the effect of changes in plant traits on the notional profitability of production. When this information was combined with genetic parameters, they found (Herrington et al., 2014) the key drivers of greater profitability compared with the current profitability in subtropical Southeast Queensland were having a greater proportion of yield early in the season and having a larger fruit size. In the development of ‘Red Rhapsody’ (Fig. 1), we focused on selecting for these traits while maintaining levels of other traits at or above commercially acceptable threshold levels.

Development of sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) and apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) cultivars and production systems in California and Europe

There is an ongoing need for sweet cherries and apricots that are improved over those existing. Improved and regular production, fruit size, firmness, time of maturity, packing, shipping and organoleptic characteristics are some traits that can be improved within the varietal maturity window. Over the last several years, we have released several sweet cherry cultivars (4 patented in Europe and others pending in the world) with early fruit ripening characteristics that are productive, with large fruit size, over a range of geographic locations with commercial potential. A number of apricots have been patented in Europe and the world and commercialized. We have identified pollination and production strategies toward maximizing the potential of these selections. The development of these cultivars and production strategies in Europe and worldwide will be discussed and reviewed as will future developments.

Plum Research and Growing in Latvia

Abstract Plums have been commercially grown in Latvia since the 19th century. Plantations expanded especially in the 1920s–1930s. At that time, many cultivars were introduced, mostly from Western Europe. After the severe winters of 1939/40, 1941/42, 1955/56, and 1978/79, the plum orchard area significantly decreased because of a lack of winter-hardy cultivars. For this reason, cultivars from Russia, Belarus, and Estonia were introduced. Among the old landraces, highly winter-hardy ‘Latvijas Dzeltenā Olplūme’ is still important. Previously it used to be productive and had good fruit quality. Unfortunately, nurseries often propagated the hardiest clones, which lacked productivity. As Latvian consumers love yellow plums, at present breeding and propagation of productive clones from old orchards is ongoing. In the mid-20th century, active plum breeding started in Latvia, crossing hardy genotypes with high quality donors. From this period ‘Lāse’ and ‘Minjona’ are still grown. Since the 1980s, plum breeding has been undedrtaken at the Institute of Horticulture. The crossing work in plums concentrated on the hexaploid group, aiming to combine large fruit size with good flavour, different time of ripening (in particular, early to medium late) and and good winter-hardiness. New cultivars include ‘Sonora’, ‘Ance’, and ‘Adelyn’, which have good quality, and productivity 20–30 kg per tree, and in some years up to 70 kg per tree. The most widely used rootstocks are seedlings of Prunus cerasifera Ehrh. ssp. divaricata C.K. Schneid., which is more hardy that the common myrobalan plum. These rootstocks have good compatibility with most cultivars except gages, and are adapted to different soil types and are disease tolerant. Their drawback is a long growth season which reduces winter-hardiness of grafted cultivars. Also, they tend to form suckers around the stem. A hardy seedling PU-20651 (P. salicina ssp. ussuriensis × P. cerasifera) was bred at the Institute, which was shown to slightly reduce tree vigour. Testing of several Western European and Russian rootstocks did not result in their introduction into production. Trials are presently being carried out with size-reducing root-stocks originated from cultivar Wangenheim VVA-1, Weiwa, S766, and M633. Commercial production of plums in Latvia is relatively small, as the area of orchards is the smallest among fruit trees. Plums are grown mostly for fresh consumption, with a small part for jams, yoghurt, and ice-cream additives. Fruits are sold mostly in small shops, markets and at farms. The main reason is the climate, which allows growing of a limited range of cultivars that tolerate the –30 °C winter temperatures in some years (about every five years). About 20 cultivars are grown commercially; the share of the six most popular plum cultivars is 69% of the total plum production. In recent years, plantations of new cultivars developed at our Institute have expanded, especially regarding the early ripening cultivar ‘Ance’.

Differences in anti-inflammatory effect of immature and mature of Rubus coreanus fruits on LPS-induced RAW 264.7 macrophages via NF-\u03baB signal pathways

BackgroundRubus coreanus fruit (RF) has been used as a traditional medicine formulation to treat various diseases including diarrhea, asthma, and cancer in East Asia (Korea, China, and Japan). RF, which is native to Korea, has a larger fruit size than that of exotic species. In this study, we aimed to compare the anti-inflammatory activities of immature and mature RF extracted with different solvents.MethodsMature and immature RF (MRF and IRF) were extracted with 30% ethanol, 70% ethanol and water at room temperature. The antioxidant activity was determined using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid (ABTS) assays. Anti-inflammatory activity was determined by measuring nitric oxide (NO) production, expression of inflammatory proteins (inducible NO synthase [iNOS], cyclooxygenase [COX]-2, nuclear factor [NF]-κB, and inhibitor of NF-κB [IκB]), and inflammatory cytokines using polymerase chain reaction in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages.ResultsThe IRF 30% ethanol extract showed higher radical scavenging activity in DPPH and ABTS assays (half-maximal inhibitory concentration [IC50] 16.0 ± 0.5 and 15.9 ± 0.4) than MRF did. In addition, the IRF 30% ethanol extract (200 μg/mL) significantly reduced the production of the inflammatory mediator NO by approximately 80% and inhibited iNOS, COX-2, phosphorylated (p)-IκB, and p-NF-κB activation compared with MRF. Moreover, IRF extract decreased the inflammatory cytokines tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin (IL)-1β, and IL-6 compared with the MRF extract.ConclusionsThis study revealed that IRF showed more beneficial effects than MRF did in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages, suggesting that IRF may be a useful anti-inflammatory agent.

Cultivars and rootstocks in the cherry producing countries

Numerous sweet and sour (tart) cherry cultivars and rootstocks were released over past decades around the world, but there are no reliable data, how many of them are currently in production. To collect data on usage of rootstocks and cultivars in global production, trends of the production and orchard systems, a questionnaire was sent to Cooperation of Science and Technology (COST) partners and the representatives of the most important cherry producing countries. In sweet cherry production there is a tendency of planting cultivars with large fruit size and medium ripening time. The countries having mild conditions prefer dwarfing or semi-dwarfing rootstocks (GiSelA 6, GiSelA 5, GiSelA 3) under irrigated conditions, while the usage of semi-vigorous or standard vigor rootstocks (MaxMa 14, Weiroot 158, P. mahaleb and P. avium seedlings) is typical in countries located in southwestern part of Europe with hot and dry conditions without irrigation. Rate of seedling usage is high, especially in eastern Europe. The cherry producing countries located outside of Europe prefer the vegetative propagated medium vigorous rootstocks. Interestingly, GiSelA series can be found all over the world; the usage of this series seemingly does not depend on the climate conditions. Sour cherry is a fruit species especially predominant in eastern Europe. German, Hungarian, Serbian, and Soviet cultivars grafted on vigorous rootstocks dominate in the production. Beside the orchards for mechanical harvest, the rate of intensive orchards for hand picking is increasing.

Sweet cherry growing in China

Sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) was firstly introduced into China in 1871. Initially, it was only planted in temples and home gardens in northern China, mainly distributed in Bohai Bay region. With the rapid development of China’s economy, cultivation area and production of sweet cherry have increased significantly since the 1980s. By 2016, the total sweet cherry plantation area reached about 180,000 ha, the harvested area and greenhouse cultural area are approximately 100,000 and 10,000 ha, with the production of 700,000 and 90,000 t, respectively. Greenhouses provide better conditions for tree growth and thus produces cherries with earlier harvest, better quality and higher yield. Nowadays, the major cultivation regions of sweet cherry are mainly distributed in Bohai Bay region and along the Longhai railway line. The major cultivars include ‘Hongdeng’, ‘Krupnoplodnaja’, ‘Tieton’, ‘Brooks’, ‘Van’, ‘Rainier’, ‘Lapins’, ‘Summit’, ‘Sunburst’, ‘Regina’, etc. ‘Hongdeng’ is the most popular cultivar in China, which has many attractive traits such as early maturity (‘Burlat’ +2~3), red color, larger fruit size (8 g), higher SSC and tasty flavor. Major rootstocks are mostly derived from P. pseudoceresus, P. serrulata, P. cerasus, P. mahaleb, and interspecific hybrids. The main training systems include traditional type (small and sparse canopy shape), central leader, bush and wall trellis, etc.