ISHS Acta Horticulturae 800: X International Pear Symposium
ASIAN PEAR BREEDING IN BRAZIL: CHARACTERIZATION OF NEW SELECTIONS |
| Authors: | W. Barbosa, R.F.A. Veiga, C.V. Pommer, R. Pio, E.A. Chagas |
| Keywords: | crosses, interspecific hybrids, subtropical region, early-ripening |
| Abstract:
Crosses among Asian (Pyrus pyrifolia (Burm.f.) Nakai) and European (P. communis L.) pear cultivars were made between 1992 and 1998 with the aim of producing new pear types for the subtropical areas of Brazil. The first interspecific hybrids produced by the Instituto Agronômico (IAC) pear breeding program were planted in various regions of São Paulo State, at latitudes from 21°11' S to 24°11' S and with 11 to 200 chilling units (CU). Thirteen out of 26 selected hybrids are still under test in subtropical-tropical climatic conditions: (0-80CU): IAC193-18, IAC193-122, IAC194-15, IAC194-132, IAC293-5 (Alegria), IAC294-13, IAC294-117, IAC394-11, IAC394-14, IAC394-115, IAC394-119, IAC494-12 and SNPC3278 (Limeira). Their main characteristics are: fruit – rounded, oblate, oblong or pyriform shape, russet-brown or green skin, crisp or soft flesh; tree – medium-high vigor, upright-spreading form. 'Alegria' (happiness, in Portuguese) pear yields medium-to-large sized fruit (380 g), which is globose and moderately oblate, with golden-brown to orange-brown russeted skin and small and sparse light yellow lenticels. Its crisp flesh is juicy, sweet (14 °Brix, pH 4.5) and excellent for fresh consumption. The cultivar 'Limeira' produces vigorous trees, which are easy to manage and yields on average 135 kg of fruits annually; the fruits are globose to oval-pyriform in shape, with an average individual weight of 320 g. When it ripens, the green-yellowish skin has an intense russeting on 30–90% of its surface. Due to the special pulp type, which is very firm and of sweet-acid flavor (15 °Brix, pH 4.1), this hybrid is targeted exclusively for the processing industries. In preliminary tests, this pear showed great potential for processing as jellies, compotes and raisins. | |
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