Plants – Rose – Climber
Plant Patent
1998-09-14
2001-06-12
Campell, Bruce R. (Department: 1661)
Plants
Rose
Climber
Plant Patent
active
PP011914
ABSTRACT:
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The new and distinct variety of peach (
Prunus persica
(L.) Batsch) originated as a first generation descendant from a hand pollinated cross of ‘Contender’ peach (non-patented)בPlant Introduction (PI) 134401’ made in 1988 at the Sandhills Research Station at Jackson Springs, N.C. ‘Contender’ was released and named as a peach cultivar by the North Carolina Agricultural Research Service in 1987, and is available in commerce. The ‘PI 134401’ parent used in this hybridization was introduced into the United States from China in 1927, has not been named, and is unavailable in commerce.
Plants and fruit of this new variety differ phenotypically from its parents. The new variety produces large, white flesh fruit that are low in acid, differing from the yellow flesh, high acid fruit of ‘Contender’. The round, smooth fruit have attractive red skin color, the foliage and fruit have moderate bacterial spot resistance, and the flowers and young fruit exhibit high resistance to freezing temperatures, distinguishing it from ‘PI 134401’. Also, ‘PI 134401’ shows no red color on the fruit surface, the fruit is elongated and furrowed, and buds are sensitive to cold temperature.
The approximately 200 seeds resulting from this controlled hybridization were germinated in a greenhouse at North Carolina State University, Raleigh, N.C. in the Fall of 1988 and planted in the field in Spring of 1989. These trees, growing on their own roots, first produced fruit in 1991, and one seedling, designated NC-C5S-005, was selected for its large white flesh fruit, attractive red color, bacterial spot resistance, low acid fruit, and heavy fruit production. This original plant was growing on its own roots, and demonstrated characteristics identical to those subsequently expressed when propagated on ‘Lovell’ seedling rootstock.
During 1993 and 1994, the original plant selection was propagated asexually by grafting of vegetative buds onto the standard peach seedling rootstock, cultivar ‘Lovell’, at the Sandhills Research Station. Seven grafted trees of the variety were established in test plots at Sandhills Research Station in 1994, and sixty grafted trees of the variety were established at the same station in 1995.
The new variety has routinely been asexually multiplied by grafting, specifically ‘T’ budding. It readily forms a graft union with peach ‘Lovell’ rootstock and resumes normal growth. During all asexual propagation, the characteristics of the original plant have been maintained, grafted trees on ‘Lovell’ rootstock exhibit characteristics identical to those of the tree on its own roots, and no aberrant phenotypes have appeared.
Test planting and performance evaluation over seven years at the Sandhills Research Station demonstrate this variety to be consistent in its characteristics even under the different growing conditions associated with yearly climatic variation.
Plants of the new variety are very vigorous and grow rapidly after establishment of trees in the field. Young trees have averaged 2-3 feet of growth per year. Plants are semi-upright in growth habit, and possess willowy branches. Flowering sometimes occurs in the second year of growth, but more commonly trees begin flowering in the third year after establishment. Flowers are single, medium red-purple, showy, and very attractive. Flowering usually begins in mid to late March in Raleigh, N.C.; the chilling requirement is estimated to be 1100 hours below 4 C, based on comparison of flowering time to known varieties such as ‘Contender’ and ‘Biscoe’. Flowering generally lasts for 7-10 days, depending on temperature at time of bloom.
Fertility of flowers is excellent, and fruit set is generally very high in most years. Flowers have shown excellent resistance to cold temperatures during winter dormancy and during flower development in the Spring. Trees produced 60% of a full fruit crop in 1996, a year in which all commercial varieties except ‘Contender’ failed to produce a fruit crop at the Sandhills Research Station because of low temperature injury. In that year, trees in flower were exposed to six consecutive nights of below freezing temperatures from March 9 through March 14, inclusive. Fruit are very large, often 7.6 to 8.9 cm in diameter, white fleshed, and low acid. Laboratory measurements of fruit at maturity show that acidity levels are about three-fold lower than that of ‘Contender’, the yellow flesh parent. Fruit ripen in late July to early August in Jackson Springs, N.C., averaging August 1 over 5 years of observation.
The new variety has been named the CHINA PEARL cultivar.
REFERENCES:
patent: P.P. 878 (1949-10-01), Geheb
patent: P.P. 8195 (1993-04-01), Zaiger et al.
Snelling Layne Karlton
Werner Dennis James
Worthington Steve Martin
Baker Wendy A.
Campell Bruce R.
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