ISHS Acta Horticulturae 538: Eucarpia symposium on Fruit Breeding and Genetics
USE OF CHLOROPHYLL FLUORESCENCE TO EVALUATE CHILLING TOLERANCE IN STRAWBERRY PLANTS |
| Authors: | S. Khanizadeh, J. DeEll, N. Hakam |
| Keywords: | Fragaria ananassa Duch, low temperature injury, spring frost, nondestructive method, chilling, strawberry, chlorophyll fluorescence, stress, freezing |
| Abstract:
Chilling susceptibility in early spring is a limiting factor for early strawberry cultivars. Most of the strawberry cultivars are damaged when the temperature is -1.0°C. Therefore, it seems necessary to develop early cultivars that can tolerate the spring frost damage. Many techniques have been used to evaluate spring frost susceptibility of known cultivars. The traditional method of screening for chilling susceptibility depends on the occurrence of the frost in early spring. Chlorophyll fluorescence (CF) has been used to study the response of plant tissue to various stresses, including chilling/freezing tolerance. We used the CF of flowers of 64 strawberry cultivars that were exposed to low temperature, and compared this to the results obtained with a traditional visual method (% visual damage to the flower). A positive correlation was obtained between the CF of the susceptible flowers and the degree of frost damage. Therefore, CF may be used as a tool to select frost hardy cultivars. | |
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