Morphological and biological features of cherry plum hybrids

V.M. Gorina, L. Lukicheva
Cherry plum (Prunus cerasifera Ehrh.) is a highly profitable fruit species and it has a high genetic potential. The objective of the research was to study some morphological and biological characteristics of cherry plum hybrids in the conditions of the steppe Crimea and to select promising genotypes for breeding and production. We studied 200 cherry plum hybrids from 12 crossing combinations during 2007-2016. Plants with a different crown habit: tall (19.2%), medium (48.8%), undersized (30.5%) were identified. They were found in the combinations with different crown shapes: pyramidal, narrow-pyramidal, flat-round, round, oval, weeping. Three dwarf plants (height 1.5 m) were selected. Flowering time had been studied and it was noted that 42 hybrids were characterized with early terms of flowering, 131 hybrids – with middle terms, and 24 hybrids – with late flowering. Late-flowering genotypes demonstrated later break of winter dormancy that let them to avoid the destructive effect of freezing temperatures during this period. The most late-flowering hybrids (9/10, 9/11, 9/13, 9/20, 9/27, 10/4) bloomed 10 days later than the cultivar ‘Olenka’, used as a control. One of the important criteria for evaluating plants is a flower. Hybrids with very small (diameter 15 mm), small (15-20 mm), medium (21-25 mm), large (26-30 mm) and very large (more than 30 mm) flowers were revealed. Plants with round, oval, ovoid and obovate petals were obtained. The two genotypes have terry flowers. In the hybrid 11/32 blossoming was noted after the appearance of leaves and its flowers were with no petals. Among the studied genotypes we also noted a great variety of fruit shapes. There were plants with yellow, orange with blush, carmine, purple and blue fruits. The studies of yield productivity revealed 12 hybrids with a stable fruiting. Based on the results of the presented investigations we selected 28 winter hard hybrids, 17 hybrids with high commercial qualities and 9 with high taste qualities. According to the complex of features a hybrid 14/11 is the one of interest for industrial use.
Gorina, V.M. and Lukicheva, L. (2021). Morphological and biological features of cherry plum hybrids. Acta Hortic. 1308, 73-80
DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2021.1308.12
https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2021.1308.12
cherry plum, morphology, hybrids, biological features, flower, fruit, crown
English

Acta Horticulturae