Development of pistachio as a crop for California
Pistachios (Pistacia vera L.) were introduced to California in the 1960s through the Chico Plant Introduction Garden.
Early plantings of several Italian cultivars began around 1970 in the San Joaquin Valley although smaller earlier plantings were established in Northern California near Sacramento.
Dr.
Julian Crane made several selections in the 1970s, that had superior nut quality to the older Italian cultivars.
In 1988, a new program was initiated as the Univ. of California by Dr.
Parfitt and J. Maranto and subsequently funded by the California Pistachio Commission.
More than 8000 seedlings were evaluated for a variety of characteristics and 10 accessions were selected for advanced trialing with Mr.
Kallsen.
Two female cultivars, ‘Golden Hills’ and ‘Lost Hills’ were selected for release through the Univ. of California, as well as one male cultivar ‘Randy’ with appropriate overlap of flowering period. ‘Golden Hills’ has been widely planted and has become an important cultivar in California.
More recently, an additional early flowering female ‘Gumdrop’ and two male cultivars, ‘Tejon’ and ‘Famoso’, were released from the Univ. of California breeding project by Dr.
Parfitt and Mr.
Kallsen.
Parfitt, D.E. and Kallsen, C.E. (2024). Development of pistachio as a crop for California. Acta Hortic. 1406, 21-30
DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2024.1406.3
https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2024.1406.3
DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2024.1406.3
https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2024.1406.3
Pistacia vera L., plant breeding, cultivar, pollenize, low chill
English