HYBRIDIZATION-BASED CITRUS BREEDING PROGRAM IN TURKEY

Breeding studies to develop new citrus cultivars have been carried out using some traditional methods such as selection, mutation and hybridization. The hybridization approach has been common in mandarin breeding programs. Mandarins are mostly preferred for fresh consumption since they have easy peeling features. A hybridization-based mandarin breeding program has been carried out in Turkey for the last ten years. ‘Clementine’ mandarin was used as female parent and many cultivars of various species were used as male parents. Over 4000 hybrids have been evaluated so far and the work are still on-going. Up to now, several promising hybrids with different characteristics have been selected. Genotype “33-6” from a ‘Clementine’ × ‘Orlando’ tangelo cross is the most promising hybrid with large fruits (175 g), dark orange rind color and early maturity (October). Hybrid genotype “20-2” from a ‘Clementine’ × ‘Valencia’ orange cross was found to be late maturing (April) and it has large fruits and good appearance. The hybrid “39-9” from a ‘Clementine’ × ‘Cocktail’ grapefruit cross has very large fruits (244 g) and attractive shape and it is harvested in November. “CO-44”, another hybrid from a ‘Clementine’ × ‘Orlando’ tangelo has large (167 g) and early maturing fruits (October). In addition to these hybrids, many genotypes have been preselected with good characteristics. In the near future, new superior cultivars may be released.