AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH AND EDUCATION CENTER
IFAS, UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
13138 LEWIS GALLAGHER ROAD
DOVER, FL 33527
Dover AREC Researc-iReport DOV-1989-4 July, 1989
CG.iirai Science
STRAWBERRY VARIETY TRIALS 1989 Library
E. E. Albregts, C. K. Chandler, and C. M. Howard OCT 25 18
INTRODUCTION University of Florida
INTRODUCTION
Florida strawoerry growers produced 10.4 million flats from 5,000 acres
during the 1987-88 season. The total yield and t-he 2,083 flats/acre
harvested were record yields. Strawberry growers received a seasonal
average of $7.09/flat, F.O.B., down from the $7.30 during the previous
season. Central Florida accounted for 4,400 acres, northern Florida 400
acres and southeast Florida 200 acres. Prices averaged $15.60 in
December 1987 and dropped to an average of $3.36 the following April.
Since fruit prices are usually greatest at the beginning of the harvest
season, it has been advantageous for strawberry growers to plant
'Selva', a day-neutral cultivar that has the potential for late Novemoer
or early December .yields. For this reason approximately 60% of west
central Florida acreage was planted to 'Selva' in 1988-89. About 5,500
acres of strawberry were planted in Florida for the 1988-89 season.
The purpose of this report is to provide results from evaluations of
selected strawberry cultivars and AREC-Dover breeding lines conducted at
the Agricultural Research and Education Center, Dover during -cie 1988-89
winter season.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Eleven Florida Dreeding lines and five cultivars were evaluated in ;ne
fruit production field. Breeding lines or cultivars marked in texcs or
tables with an (NS) were grown in Nova Scotia while those marked witi an
(0) were grown in Ontario, Canada. All other cultivars and breeding
lines were grown locally. Beds were fumigated with 300 Ibs of nethyl
bromide and chloropicirn (MC-98-2) per bedded acre and fertilized with
Professor (Soils), Assist. Professor (Plant Breeder), and Professor
(Plant Pathologist). respectively, with the Univ. of Florida, IFAS,
Agricultural Research and Education Center, Dover, FL 33527
2000 lbs/acre of a 10-4-10. One fourth of the fertilizer was broadcast
before bed preparation, and the remainder was banded 2 inches deep in
the bed center. One-half of the applied nitrogen was slow release,
sulfur-coated urea. Plants were set either on October 18 or 20, 1988
except 'Dover' and 'Dover-NS', and Florida breeding lines 79-1126,
79-1126-NS, 82-1452, and 82-1452-NS which were set on October 24. A
randomized complete block with 5 replications and 14 plants per plot was
used. Plants were sprayed with approved pesticides as needed, and water
was applied as required by overhead sprinkler irrigation. Fruit harvest
started in December and continued through April. Fruit were graded,
counted, and weighed, and marketable fruit were also evaluated for
several quality factors as noted in Tables.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The weather during the growing season (Table 1) indicates that rainfall
was in excess in September, October, and November and deficit for most
of the remainder of the season. Air temperatures were above normal in
November, January, February, and March and normal during the other
months. Six clones did not produce fruit in December, 1988 (Table 2).
All clones grown in Canada produced fruit in December and gave
numerically higher December yields than the same clones grown locally.
Two of zhe clones grown locally,' Muir', a day neutral, and FL-82-1452,
did not produce Decemoer yields. Of the clones grown in nurseries in
Canada and locally, the locally grown clones generally gave higher
January yields. Clones FL-81-1350 and' Dover' gave numerically the
highest yields through January. Since prices generally decrease with
time from early December to the end of the harvest season, fruit
produced in December and January produce the greatest profit. Seasonal
yields were highest with clone FL-81-1350. 'Dover' and the locally
grown FL-79-1126 clone along with clones FL-83-37 and FL-84-1932 also
gave high total yields. The total yields of the California cultivars
were low. Selva' yields were reduced because of an infestation by the
two-spotted mite. However, this did not affect the percent marketable
fruit of 'Selva' (Table 4). Average fruit weight was highest with clone
FL-85-3182, while clones FL-85-2550 and FL-82-1556 were also quite large
(Table 2). Clones FL-83-428,and 'Muir-O', had lowest fruit weight.
Fruit of Canadian grown 'Muir' and 'Dover' were somewhat smaller than
those from the same clones grown locally. However, fruit of clone
FL-82-1452 were larger from Canadian grown plants. Cull fruit yields
were greatest with clone FL-83-428 (Table 3). This was the result of
small fruit size in March. In addition, clone FL-83-428 also had the
greatest percent cull fruit while clones 'Dover', 'Chandler', and
FL-84-2433 also had a high percent cull fruit (Table 4).
Many of the clones which had the highest yields of marketable fruit also
have high yields of cull fruit. This was mainly true by volume but not
necessarily by percent. The principal reasons for fruit to be
unmarketable are small size, rots, or being misshapen. Small fruit were
generally the largest percent of the culls and this occurs at the end of
each fruiting cycle. Clones with large fruit will have a greater
percentage of the cull fruit as rots.
Fruit color is important in sales to consumers and this is important to
growers. Most consumers have preconceived notions about the proper
color of ripe strawberries. If the fruit are dark, fruit are thought to
be overripe; if light in color then fruit are not ripe. Of course,
neither assumption is necessarily true. Nevertheless, consumers are
more attracted to bright shiny appearing fruit than to fruit dull in
appearance. 'Muir' fruit from either plant source is lighter in color
than fruit of other California cultivars, while 'Dover' tends to have a
darker red color. Two Florida clones FL-84-2433 and FL-85-2550 are
light red. Poor fruit color (Table 5, ratings 1 & 6), and fruit
blemishes (Table 6) can result in fruit being unmarketable. Clones
FL-84-902, FL-85-3182, and FL-84-1932 had a considerable number of fruit
with green tips. It is also interesting to note that the four clones
with ooth local and Canadian grown plants in the experiment have
numerically more green fruit tips on the Canadian grown plants. With
clones FL-79-1126 and 'Dover', the Canadian grown plants have more than
double the number of fruit with green tips The percent green shoulders
is high for three California cultivars, 'Chandler', 'Muir', and
'Pajaro', and for the Canadian grown 'Dover'. Large fans were less than
l%.of the marketable fruit except for local 'Dover' plants and 'Selva'.
Proliferation (development of leaves and small plants on flowers or
fruit) was a serious problem with either plant source of'Muir'. Many of
the 'Muir' fruit were rated cull because of this problem which existed
throughout the harvest season. Many of the fruit of clone FL-82-1452
(from either source) formed a neck with splitting of the flesh on the
neck and shoulder of the fruit. A majority of the cull fruit were cull
because of the splitting of the flesh and appearance of the neck. Both
FL-82-1452 and 'Muir' would oe-unacceptable in the commercial market.
Fruit firmness and resistance to abrasion gives some indication of the
shipping ability of the fruit (Tables 7 and 8). Those fruit rated soft
are more subject to damage in harvesting and shipping. Clones
FL-79-1126 and 'Pajaro' had no fruit which were soft. The clone
FL-79-1126-NS had less than 1% of its fruit rated soft, and a greater
percentage of the fruit from che Canadian source were rated hard than
the fruit from the local source. This difference was not apparent with
the other clones derived from 2 sources. Fruit from clones FL-85-3182
and FL-83-37 were not as firm as the other clones. Clones FL-84-902,
FL-82-1556, and FL-84-1932 and both sources of clone FL-79-1126 gave
"highest resistance" to abrasion (Table 8). Clone FL-81-1350 was very
easily damaged by abrasion especially during warm weather. In addition,
clones FL-85-3182 and Fl-83-37 were also soft and moderately susceptible
to abrasion damage.
SUMMARY
The fruit yields of the California cultivars were low; however, in
adjacent experiments 'Chandler', 'Pajaro', and 'Selva' gave higher
yields. The highest yielding clone, FL-81-1350, had large fruit size
(17.75 g), high early and total yield, and good fruit color. However,
this clone is very easily bruised in warm weather and thus would not be
acceptable as a commercial cultivar. Clone FL-79-1126 produces high
early and total yields and has excellent shipping qualities, but the
fruit is smaller than desired. Clone FL-83-37 is not quite as early as
clone FL-79-1126 but it has larger fruit. However, fruit damage with
clone FL-83-37 during warmer periods due to abrasion may be a problem.
Clone FL-84-1932 is excellent in most respects but probably needs to be
grown in nurseries in northern U.S. or southern Canada as does clone
FL-83-37 to enhance early yield. Clones FL-82-1556 and FL-85-3182 show
some promise but need to be evaluated further. The fruit color of clone
FL-82-1556 is somewhat light and may oe a problem. Clone FL-85-3182 had
about 8% green tips in 1988-89 season while in previous trials these
have been about 3%. Fruit yields and fruit weight have been high in
previous trials. Like FL-83-37, the fruit can be bruised easily in warm
weather.
In conclusion, clones FL-79-1126 and FL-84-1932 are very promising lines
with only minor deficiencies. Clones FL-85-1556, FL-83-37 and
FL-85-3182 show good potential for release although they do have some
weaknesses. These last 3 clones could fill a niche in the marketplace.
Table 1. Weather conditions at the AREC-Oover during 1988-89 and the
57-year averages for temperature and rainfall.
1988
Mean Temp. (OF)
Min. ;vlax.
73 89
61 83
60 80
51 72
56 77
53. 75
59 80
59 83
Rainfall
(inches)
17.34
10.41
6.92
1.14
3.12
0.24
1.41
1.51
57-yr average
nean Temp. (oF)
Mi n. ivlax.
71 88
63 82
55 76
51 72
49 70
50 72
54 77
59 82
Months
Sept.
Oct.
Nov.
Dec.
Jan.
Feb.
Mar.
Apr.
Rainfall
(inches)
7.09
2.54
1.79
2.26
2.31
3.08
3.63
2.43
------
Table 2. Marketable fruit yield (flats/acre) and average weight of
marketable fruit (g/fruit) for 1988-89 season.
Seasonal
Clone December January February March April Total avg. wt.
Marketable yield (flats/acre) g/fruit
FL-83-37 ---- 913 481 983 2 2378DC 16.68fz
FL-83-428 3 731 999 322 1 2056def 13.42j
FL-84-902 ---- 615 538 653 12 1819fg 15.03hi
FL-79-1126 40 702 779 936 8 2465b 15.19g-i
FL-79-1126-NS 283 362 814 596 14 2069def 14.90i
FL-81-1350 29 1304 524 1022 16 2894a 17.75d
FL-82-1452 ---- 653 609 435 28 1725g 17.12e
FL-82-1452-NS 299 646 531 574 35 2015ef 18.03cd
FL-82-1556 ---- 621 849 834 9 2313bcd 18.44bc
FL-84-1932 ---- 942 439 1019 57 2456b 16.26f
FL-84-2433 2 860 640 633 7 2143cde 15.69g
FL-85-2550 67 833 767 580 7 2254b-e 18.81b
FL-85-3182 8 767 881 610 4 2270b-e 19.75a
Cultivars
Chandler-0 23 400 148 71 4 1288h 16.42f
Dover 26 1068 796 510 11 2411bc 15.64g
Dover-NS 362 733 750 648 2 2495b 14.93i
Muir ---- 695 225 374 27 1321h 15.49gh
Muir-0 154 450 202 507 24 1337h 13.88j
Pajaro-0 93 512 35 1075 9 1723g 15.36ghi
Selva-0 218 198 404 433 9 1262h 14.86i
ZNumbers followed by different letters in a
different by Duncan's multiple range test,
column are significantly
5% level.
Table 3. Cull fruit yields (flats/acre) for 1988-89 season.
Cull yieldsz (flats/acre)
Clone December January February March April Seasonal
FL-83-37 --- 41 40 578 5 664fghy
FL-83-428 --- 108 331 887 15 1341a
FL-84-902 --- 44 61 620 60 785def
FL-79-1126 --- 82 84 690 15 871d
FL-79-1126-NS 12 69 154 455 31 721efg
FL-81-1350 --- 75 34 530 28 667fgn
FL-82-1452 --- 88 89 248 38 464j
FL-82-1452-NS 3 126 70 243 40 482j
FL-82-1556 --- 132 147 504 24 806de
FL-84-1932 --- 90 140 376 61 668fgh
FL-84-2433 --- 214 245 561 10 1031c
FL-85-2550 --- 32 73 252 15 372ghi
FL-85-3182 --- 219 181 438 8 846de
Cultivar
Chandler-O --- 27 30 560 24 641ghi
Dover --- 144 226 818 19 1207b
Dover-NS 5 110 181 870 17 11840
Muir --- 77 153 219 70 518ij
Muir-O 20 119 98 237 59 532hij
Pajaro-0 --- 40 18 618 39 715efg
Selva-0 25 51 39 128 12 255k
ZCull fruit were those
ounce), had rot, were
that either weighed less than 10 grams (1/3
damaged, or were severely misshapen.
YNumoers followed by different letters in a column are significantly
different by Duncan's multiple range test, 5% level.
Table 4. Monthly and seasonal percent marketable fruit for variety trial 1988-89.
Clone
FL-83-37
FL-83-428
FL-84-902
FL-79-1126
FL-79-1126-NS
FL-81-1350
FL-82-1452
FL-82-1452-NS
FL-82-1556
FL-84-1932
FL-84-2433
FL-85-2550
FL-85-3182
Cultivar
Chandler-0
Dover
Dover-NS
Muir
Muir-0
Pajaro-0
Selva-0
ZNumbers followed by different letters
multiple range test, 5% level.
in a column are significantly different by Duncan's
April
Seasonal
December
100.Oaz
100.Oa
95.8a
100.Oa
98.7a
100.Oa
100.Oa
100.Oa
100.Oa
100.Oa
98.6a
88.8d
100.Oa
89.8d
January
95.7a
87.1de
93.3a-c
89.6b-d
83.9ef
94.5ab
87.5de
83.6ef
81.8fg
91.1a-d
80.0fg
94.0ab
77.6g
93.5ab
88.1c-e
87.1de
90.2b-d
79.5fg
92.9a-c
79.7fg
February
92.5ab
75.2e-g
89.7a-c
90.4a-c
84.2a-e
93.9a
87.4a-d
88.1a-d
84.8a-e
74.3e-g
72.1fg
89.4a-c
82.9a-f
82.2b-f
77.9d-f
7..6c-f
60.1hi
66.1gh
54.0i
90.8a-c
March
63.0de
26.6j
51.1h
57.6e-g
56.9e-h
65.6dc
62.4d-f
70.4a-c
62.0d-f
72.9ab
53.3gh
58.0e-g
58.3e-g
56.1f-h
38.0i
42.7i
62.9ed
68.2b-d
63.5de
75.6a
48.9a-c
14.8c
24.1bc
34.0a-c
37.2a-c
38.2a-c
38.6a-c
45.7a-c
44.5a-c
48.5a-c
61.9a
19.6c
57.4ab
30.0a-c
33.2a-c
22.9c
23.6bc
30.3a-c
31.3a-c
44.9a-c
78.2b
60.6h
69.8d-f
73.9c
74.1c
81.2ab
79.3b
80.7ab
74.1c
78.7b
67.6e-g
78.6b
72.8cd
66.9fg
66.6g
67.8e-g
71.8cd
71.4cd
70.7de
83.0a
Table 5. Color rating of marketable fruit
1988-89 harvest season.
during the
Color Ratingz
Clone 1 2 3 4 5 6
FL-83-37 --- 16.0 54.3 29.8 ---
FL-83-428 --- 36.7 58.2 5.1 -
FL-84-902 --- 15.1 47.2 35.8 1.9
FL-79-1126 --- 12.2 61.0 24.4 2.4
FL-79-1126-NS --- 13.8 66.4 19.0 0.9 ---
FL-81-1350 --- 10.0 42.5 45.0 2.5 ---
FL-82-1452 --- 26.7 61.9 11.4 -
FL-82-1452-NS --- 13.7 66.1 18.5 1.6 ---
FL-82-1556 --- 26.0 58.0 15.0 1.0 ---
FL-84-1932 --- 13.7 47.1 37.3 2.0
FL-84-2433 2.0 57.8 36.3 4.0 -
FL-85-2550 --- 45.7 52.9 1.4 -
FL-85-3182 --- 25.7 49.5 23.8 1.0
Cultivar
Chandler-0 --- 9.6 46.8- 39.4 4.3 ---
Dover --- 9.5 23.8 54.8 11.9 ---
Dover-NS --- 2.7 51.8 42.9 2.7 ---
Muir 1.0 23.0 41.0 27.0 8.0 ---
Muir-0 --- 25.9 44.6. 25.0 4.5 ---
Pajaro-0 --- 16.7 43.8 32.3 7.3 ---
Selva-0 0.9 16.7 47.2 30.6 2.8 1.9
z
Fruit color rating: 1 = very light color, 2 = moderately
light color, 3 = average red color, 4 = bright red color,
5 = moderately dark color, and 6 = dark color. Color is
normally a shade of red.
YNumbers are percentage of fruit rated for each category.
May not equal 100 because of rounding.
Table 6. Percent of marketable size fruit with the listed
defects during the 1988-89 season.
Green Green Water
Clone Tips Shoulders Fans Damage
Percent
FL-83-37 1.99 1.64 0.59 ----
FL-83-428 4.26 0.78 0.27 ----
FL-84-902 11.61 0.05 0.05 ----
FL-79-1126 1.66 0.21 0.04 ----
FL-79-1126-NS 5.52 0.25 0.05 ----
FL-81-1350 4.22 0.30 0.26 ----
FL-82-1452 3.59 0.49 0.35 ----
FL-82-1452-NS 3.81 0.76 0.82 ----
FL-82-1556 1.41 0.11 0.39 0.05
FL-84-1932 7.00 0.23 0.51 0.04
FL-84-2433 2.02 2.65 0.52 ----
FL-85-2550 3.57 0.09 0.09 ----
FL-85-3182 8.02 0.55 ---- ----
Cultivar
Chandler-0 2.62 5.61 0.72 ----
Dover 0.50 1.01 1.42 ----
Dover-NS 1.61 4.97 0.42 ----
Muir 0.83 4.82 0.58
Muir-0 1.10 4.94 0.51 ----
Pajaro-0 0.75 4.43 0.44 0.25
Selva-0 0.91 1.67 1.08 ----
Table 7. The percentage of harvests of each clone with fruit
rated as hard, firm, or soft for 1988-89 season.
Clone Hard Firm Soft
FL-83-37 6.1jz 57.8d 36.la
FL-84-428 24.3f-h 63.2cd 12.4b-d
FL-84-902 21.4g-h 62.0cd 16.7bc
FL-79-1126 34.4de 65.6b-d ---
FL-79-1126-NS 74.3a 25.0f 0.7f
FL-81-1350 10.2ij 75.4ab 14.3bc
FL-82-1452 32.3d-f 56.0d 11.6b-e
FL-82-1452-NS 25.8e-h 63.3cd 10.9b-e
FL-82-1556 24.2f-h 59.8cd 16.0bc
FL-84-1932 66.6ab 31.8ef 1.6ef
FL-84-2433 54.1c 41.8e 4.1df
FL-85-2550 39.8d 53.6d 6.5c-f
FL-85-3182 5.0j 58.1d 36.9a
Cultivar
Chandler-O 22.1g-h 70.2b-c 7.7c-f
Dover 11.2ij 84.8a 4.1d-f
Dover-NS 18.6h-i 71.7bc 9.6b-f
Muir 30.0d-g 53.8d 16.3bc
Muir-O 18.9h-i, 62.0cd 19.1b
Pajaro-O 36.2d 63.8b-d
Selva-O 58.0bc 34.6ef 7.4c-f
significantly
ZNumbers followed by different letters in a column are
different by Duncan's multiple range test, 5% level.
Table 8. Percent of harvests that each clone was rated with a high,
medium or low resistance to abrasion for 1988-89 season.
Resistance to Abrasion
Clone High Medium Low
FL-83-37 76.9ez 9.3b 13.7b
FL-83-428 91.6b-d 4.1b-d 4.3c
FL-84-902 88.lcd 6.3b-d 5.6c
FL-79-1126 100.Oa --
FL-79-1126-NS 100.a -- --
FL-81-1350 47.5f 21.1a 31.4a
FL-82-1452 97.6ab 0.8d 1.7c
FL-82-1452-NS 97.9ab 1.2d 0.7c
FL-82-1556 86.5d 7.1bc 6.4c
FL-84-1932 100.Oa -
FL-84-2433 96.0ab 2.5cd 1.6c
FL-85-2550 97.4ab --- 2.6c
FL-85-3182 76.4e 8.9b 14.6b
Cultivar
Chandler-O 99.2a 0.8d ---
Dover 95.1ab 4.0b-d 0.9c
Dover-NS 93.2a-c 3.0cd 3.7c
Muir 99.0a .Od ---
Muir-O 97.8ab 1.5d 0.8c
Pajaro-O 99.2a 0.8d ---
Selva-O 98.5a 0.7d 0.7c
ZNumbers followed by different letters in a column are significantly
different by Duncan's Multiple Range Test, 5% level.
HISTORIC NOTE
The publications in this collection do
not reflect current scientific knowledge
or recommendations. These texts
represent the historic publishing
record of the Institute for Food and
Agricultural Sciences and should be
used only to trace the historic work of
the Institute and its staff. Current IFAS
research may be found on the
Electronic Data Information Source
(EDIS)
site maintained by the Florida
Cooperative Extension Service.
Copyright 2005, Board of Trustees, University
of Florida
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