BREEDING OF SWEET PERSIMMON CULTIVAR 'CHUYEON' WITH HIGH QUALITY FOR EARLY KOREAN THANKSGIVING DAY

Although persimmon production in Korea ranks the second in the world next to China, new persimmon cultivars from cross breeding have been very few. In recent years, breeding programs for non-astringent types have been actively conducted to develop high-quality and early-maturing cultivars with moderate tree vigor better adaptable to variable climate conditions in Korea. Among seedlings derived from crossing between ‘Nishimura-wase’ and ‘Johongsi’ made in 2000, we selected a prominent line ‘00-15-87’ exhibiting high fruit quality with non-astringent trait in 2008. It was named ‘Chuyeon’ finally in 2011 after 3-year tests. The tree is moderately vigorous and has semi-spreading shape. The fruits mature around September 20 for 3 years at Yeongam County in Jeonnam Province, when the Korean Thanksgiving Day called ‘Chuseok’ is frequently held. The fruit weighs about 180 g and soluble solids average to 16.0°Brix, having round-oblate shape with orange skin color.