Determining Morphological, Pomological, and Qualitative Traits of Peach Cultivars and Genotypes under the Environmental Conditions of Khorasan Razavi Province

Document Type : Full Paper

Authors

• Ameneh Ghahremani ¹
• Ebrahim Ganji Moghaddam ²
• Ali Marjani ³

¹ Department of Agriculture, Faculty of Agriculture, Islamic Azad University, Bojnourd, Iran.

² Crop and Horticultural Science Research Department, Khorasan Razavi Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Center, AREEO, Mashhad, Iran

³ Department of Agriculture, Islamic Azad University, Bojnoord Branch, Bojnourd, North Khorasan, Iran.

Abstract

Keywords

• Tissue firmness
• Flavor index
• Pomological traits
• Yield efficiency

20.1001.1.2008482.1402.54.1.4.9

Main Subjects

• Fruit Science

Extended Abstract

Introduction

    Optimum productivity of the orchard and its efficient management lead to the economic dynamism of the fruit industry, which dependes directly on the use of desirable cultivars, improvement of tree survival, growth management, and promotion of product marketability. Peach (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch) belongs to the genus Prunus, family Rosaceae, and subfamily Prunoideae. It originated from the warm regions of China and has a very high genetic diversity. More than 3000 varieties have been identified and their cultivation dates back to 1100 years before Christ. In recent years, peach production has increased due to the introduction of modified cultivars, along with new management methods. Iran's share in the global cultivated area is 90,000 ha, with a production rate of 1.2 million tons. The most important peach-producing provinces are Fars, Alborz, Mazandaran, Golestan, Hamadan, Markazi, West Azerbaijan, and Ardabil, with an average yield of 13 to 15 tons per ha. The present experiment was conducted to compare and evaluate the physiological traits and fruit quality characteristics of 21 cultivars and genotypes of peaches in Mashhad climatic conditions.

Material and methods

 Morpho-physiological and pomological characteristics of 21 peach cultivars/genotypes were investigated, over a two-year period (2017-2019), under Mashhad's climatic conditions. This study was carried out at the Research and Education Center for Agriculture and Natural Resources of Khorasan Razavi, utilizing a randomized complete block design with three replications. Each experimental unit consisted of three peach trees grown from seedling rootstock. The seedlings had similar growth potential and were four-year old. Thirteen varieties, including 'Baby Gold-5', 'Apago', 'Dixie Red', 'Paeezeh-Mashhad', 'J.H.Hale', 'O'Henry', 'Early-Red', 'Elberta', Vizivo', 'Shasta', 'Shorkho-Sefid Mashhad', 'Suncrest', and ‘Redheven’, along with eight genotypes coded as 'PMsh-1' to 'PMsh-8' were selected from various regions of Khorasan Razavi province and evaluated in the study.

Results and discussion

   The results indicated significant differences between cultivars and genotypes in terms of  morphological, pomological, and qualitative traits. The results showed that ‘Early-Red’ and ‘Vizivo’ were among the early flowering genotypes with a long flowering period (20 days). ‘Baby Gold-5’ and ‘PMsh-5’ were the earliest ripening, and ‘PMsh-2’ and ‘PMsh-4’ were the latest-ripening genotypes. ‘Dixie Red’ and ‘PMsh-5’, with 1.85 and 1.77 m³ respectively, had the highest volume of the crown of the tree. Fruit weight is a critical trait that significantly determines the fruit market value and peach yield performance. ‘J.H.Hale’ had the highest fruit weight with an average of 148.92 g, while ‘Apago’, ‘Early-Red’, and ‘PMsh-5’ had the lowest. ‘PMsh-1’, ‘Vizivo’, ‘PMsh-6’, and ‘Sorkho-Sefid Mashhad’ cultivars and genotypes had the highest fruit length, width, and shape index, which placed  statistically in the same group with ‘J.H.Hale’ cultivar. ‘Sorkho-Sefid Mashhad’ cultivar showed a 59.1% more yield efficiency, compared to the control cultivar (‘J.H.Hale’). The highest yield efficiency belonged to ‘Baby Gold-5’, ‘PMsh-3’, ‘Suncrest’, and ‘PMsh-8’ (1.84, 1.77, 2.01, and 1.76 kg.cm^-2, respectively). The lowest acidity achieved in ‘Apago’, ‘Shasta’, and ‘PMsh-8’. ‘Sorkho-Sefid Mashhad’, compared to the control cultivar (‘J.H.Hale’), had the highest TSS content, which increased by 3.68%. ‘Apago’, ‘PMsh-1’, ‘Shasta’, and ‘Sorkho-Sefid Mashhad’ had higher flavor index, 16.17, 27.25, 26.29, and 26.67% respectively, compared to ‘J.H.Hale’ cultivar. During the initial years of a tree's growth, the root volume is typically low, as the tree ages and the roots become more established, its average of morphological features, such as the volume of the crown, the cross-sectional area of the trunk, and the tree's height, increase. This increase in size is then followed by an increase in the yield and overall volume of tree.

Conclusion

    Totally, based on the studied traits, ‘Sorkho-Sefid Mashhad’, ‘Vizivo’, ‘PMsh-1’, and ‘PMsh-6’ are recommended as promising cultivars and genotypes under Mashhad climatic conditions.