Prairie Fruit Genebank - Ministry of Health · The University of Saskatchewan has the largest collection of praire fruit varieties and is the coldest location in North America where

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Prairie Fruit Genebank ADF#20070076

Final Report, Jan. 2011

Principle Investigator: Dr. Bob Bors

Technicians: Peter Reimer, Ellen Sawchuk, Rick Sawatzky and Travis Sander

Students: Tyler Kaban, Eric Gerbrandt, James Dawson

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Contents Contents .......................................................................................................................................... 2

List of Figures ................................................................................................................................. 4

List of Tables .................................................................................................................................. 4

Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................ 5

1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 6

2 History..................................................................................................................................... 8

3 Preserving the Collection ........................................................................................................ 9

3.1 Genebank Location .......................................................................................................... 9

3.2 Inventory and prioritizing of existing collections ............................................................ 9

3.3 Plot Plans ........................................................................................................................ 13

3.4 Field Activities ............................................................................................................... 13

3.4.1 Propagating endangered accessions ........................................................................ 14

3.4.2 Pest and Weed Control............................................................................................ 15

3.4.3 Field Labels ............................................................................................................. 15

3.5 Crop Particulars .............................................................................................................. 16

3.5.1 Apples ..................................................................................................................... 16

3.5.2 Black Currants ........................................................................................................ 17

3.5.3 Cherry Plums .......................................................................................................... 17

3.5.4 Haskap..................................................................................................................... 18

3.5.5 Hazelnuts................................................................................................................. 18

3.5.6 Pears ........................................................................................................................ 18

3.5.7 Plums....................................................................................................................... 18

3.5.8 Raspberries .............................................................................................................. 19

3.5.9 Sandcherries ............................................................................................................ 19

3.5.10 Saskatoons............................................................................................................... 19

3.5.11 Seabuckthorn........................................................................................................... 26

3.5.12 Sour Cherries .......................................................................................................... 26

3.5.13 Choke Cherries, Highbush Cranberries, Missouri Currants ................................... 26

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3.5.14 Strawberries ............................................................................................................ 27

4 Collection Availability and Distribution ............................................................................... 28

4.1 Stool Beds ...................................................................................................................... 28

4.2 Budwood ........................................................................................................................ 28

4.3 Online Availability ......................................................................................................... 28

4.4 Distribution..................................................................................................................... 30

5 Building the collection .......................................................................................................... 33

5.1 Institutional relationships ............................................................................................... 33

5.1.1 Brooks, AB ............................................................................................................. 33

5.1.2 Old College, AB...................................................................................................... 33

5.1.3 Unity, SK ................................................................................................................ 33

5.1.4 Morden, MB ............................................................................................................ 33

5.1.5 Vavilov Institute, Russia ......................................................................................... 34

5.1.6 Ag Canada’s: Canadian Clonal Genebank, ON ...................................................... 34

5.2 Grapes............................................................................................................................. 34

5.3 Strawberries .................................................................................................................... 34

5.4 Apples............................................................................................................................. 37

5.5 Sabbatical Acquisitions .................................................................................................. 38

6 Information Resource Development ..................................................................................... 38

6.1 Historical Documents ..................................................................................................... 38

6.2 Database ......................................................................................................................... 39

6.3 PFG Website .................................................................................................................. 40

6.3.1 Training ................................................................................................................... 40

6.3.2 Photography ............................................................................................................ 40

6.3.3 Website Layout ....................................................................................................... 40

6.4 Extension events ............................................................................................................. 41

7 Fruit Exchange and Analysis ................................................................................................ 42

7.1 Cherries .......................................................................................................................... 42

7.2 Haskap ............................................................................................................................ 42

7.3 Saskatoons ...................................................................................................................... 42

Appendix 1: Germplasm Received by the U of S Fruit Program ................................................. 43

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Appendix 2: Fruit Articles Prepared by the U of S Fruit Program ............................................... 47

Appendix 3: Extension Article “Cider as a Processing Option for Prairie Apple Producers” .... 48

Appendix 4: Extension Article “Popular Fruit Varieties, 2010” .................................................. 52

Appendix 5: Extension Document “University of Saskatchewan Apple Introducations, 1997-2010” ............................................................................................................................................. 56

Appendix 6: Extension Document “Apple Cultivars Named by PAPI” ....................................... 58

Appendix 7: Extension Article “Prairie Fruit Summary, 2010” ................................................... 59

List of Figures Figure 1: Fruit plantings in 2008. ................................................................................................. 10Figure 2: Fruit plots as of Jan 2011. ............................................................................................. 11Figure 3: Sample Plot Plan. .......................................................................................................... 13Figure 4:Permanent Tree Tags ...................................................................................................... 16Figure 5: Top worked apples. .................................................................................................... 17Figure 6:Upright and sideways harvesters. . ................................................................................ 20Figure 7: Guidelines for classifying bush shape. .......................................................................... 21Figure 8: Bush shape of Saskatoon Seedlings.. ............................................................................ 21Figure 9: Survey of Saskatoon seedling heights.. ......................................................................... 22Figure 10: Saskatoon seedlings in Block 16. ................................................................................ 23Figure 11: Flavour analysis of ‘Block 16 Saskatoons’. ................. Error! Bookmark not defined.Figure 12: Comparisons of our better tasting Saskatoons to previous studies ............................. 25Figure 13. Tetraploid strawberries that were saved as bulk seeds.. ............................................. 27Figure 14:Example of a Germplasm List ...................................................................................... 29Figure 15: Online request form(http://www.fruit.usask.ca/requestform.html) ............................. 30Figure 16: Wild fruits gathered while on sabbatical. .................................................................... 38

List of Tables Table 1: Relative Crop Importance ............................................................................................... 12Table 2: Fruit trees revitalized through grafting from 2008 to 2010. ........................................... 14Table 3 Evaluation of Saskatoon berry flavour and yield by row. ............................................... 23Table 4: Tree fruit Germplasm Distributed over the last 3 years ................................................. 31Table 5:Strawberry Crosses .......................................................................................................... 35Table 6: Germinated strawberries ................................................................................................. 36Table 7:Apple Crosses Incorporating Non-Hardy Genetics ......................................................... 37Table 8: Fruit Related Documents ................................................................................................ 39

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Executive Summary This ADF project allowed us to revitalize our germplasm collection at the University of Saskatchewan Fruit Program. We also acquired 70 new clonal accessions, 50 seedling families, and over 1200 wild Lonicera caerulea. Approximately 30 acres of fruit collections were maintained and improved. Apples, plums, saskatoons, cherry plums, sandcherries, currants and strawberries were the crops which needed and received major renovations through drastic pruning or were propagated and relocated.

Record keeping and labeling was brought up to the computer age. Previously, planting plans and acquisition records were kept in an assortment of record books (some decades old) and loose-leaf files. Now they are in Excel files, complete with maps, locations, as well as lists of accessions by species.

In the field, most of the labels were wooden stakes that had rotted. Fortunately, we had taken measurements within each row for each family or named variety at the time of planting to keep the plants straight. Now, we have metal tags on most of our tree fruit collection.

Our webpage had a dated design with an unwieldy address; something like: www.usask.ca/ag.college/plant.sciences.dept/dom.fruit.program /index/ . It was basically a page with a listing of about 10 articles and minimal photography. The webpage had no indication that we even had an extensive collection of fruit. Now we have a website with separate pages for major fruit crops, calendar of events, links listings for major crops, germplasm collections, etc. The website has a fresh look about it, with our own photos and has a name easy to remember www.fruit.usask.ca ! Each of the technicians in our program, and the principal investigator, are now well versed in using digital cameras and associated software.

The improved website has brought us closer to growers and improved our dissemination of information. It has been an important source of information to the press which in turn helps with publicity for our fruit industry. It also has brought us new research contacts around the globe and likely played a role in our new graduate students from BC and Nova Scotia wanting to do research in our program. We have received requests and supplied fruit samples to a few dozen companies and research institutes in the last few years with many of the request stemming from visiting our website.

With this project we ‘caught up’ on in many areas of preserving our germplasm but it also organized record keeping and information sharing for the future. We have also gained new skills in photography and website creation that will make our jobs more effective in helping our growers.

http://www.usask.ca/ag.college/plant.sciences.dept/dom.fruit.program%20/index/�

http://www.fruit.usask.ca/�

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1 Introduction Cold hardy fruit germplasm has the potential to serve a vital role for the food security of prairie provinces, and cold climates in general. According to the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization, “Countries around the world will need to draw on [genebanks] to respond to growing environmental pressures, such as climate change and unknown pests and plant diseases, and to feed a rapidly expanding population.” Importing 100% of our fruit from warmer climates may not be a sustainable. By maintaining cultivars specifically suited for cold continental environments, a hardy fruit genebank ensures that growing locally remains an option for people in Prairie Provinces.

A cold climate location is vital to the preservation of this germplasm. In warmer genebank collections like those in Harrow Ontario or Corvallis Oregon, cold hardy cultivars would succumb to disease and pest pressure for which they have no resistance. Most cultivars would be unable to cope with the warmer climate and warmer winters. Still, similar cold hardy collections across Canada have lost funding and their survival is doubtful. The Morden research station in Manitoba and Brooks research station in Alberta are examples of collections which are being dismantled or abandoned. The Vavilov Institute in Russia, another refuge for cold hardy fruit germplasm, is slated for demolition to make way for housing units. As these significant collections dwindle, the Prairie Fruit Genebank (PFG) becomes an increasingly important resource.

The PFG seeks to fulfill its role of Genebank by; preserving its cold hardy germplasm, making this germplasm available to researchers, sharing information about the cultivars in the collection and making fruit available for food research. Preserving the collection starts with maintaining the identities of the plants in the field. This necessitates field labeling as well as taking inventory and prioritizing existing collections. Extensive field work is also needed to preserve the collection. This field work includes propagating endangered selections, pest and weed control, as well as general maintenance which could include pruning, renovation, weeding and cultivating.

Making the germplasm available to interested breeders and researchers requires both field work, and online activity. In the field, activities like stool bed pruning, pruning for budwood, rooted cutting propagation and seed collection ensures that the germplasm is available upon request. Online activity includes posting lists of the germplasm in our collection for general review, posting contact information and creating an online infrastructure where requests for germplasm can be managed. Although germplasm is distributed in a number of forms, the PFG has shipped mostly budwood in the last three years.

Information regarding cultivars in our collection has also been made available as part of the PFG. This information is valuable to researchers, breeders, and growers during cultivar selection. Extensive data has been compiled concerning the germplasm in the PFG collection. This data comes in the form of breeder’s notebooks, historical documents, loose-leaf notes, publications,

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and oral and written communication with genebank staff. This data is posted online as it becomes available.

Some researchers require fruit for analysis or food studies. Crops are harvested each season and stored in a -40C freezer until it they are needed. Cherries and Haskap were harvested in 2008, 2009 and 2010. Saskatoons were harvested in 2009. Other crops including plums, sandcherries or chokecherries are harvested upon request.

Project Goals

• Preserve and increase the diversity of fruit crops suitable for prairie growers. • Increase the availablity of material through collection maintenance and online activity. • Share information with growers and organizations on prairie hardy fruit cultivars. This

includes crop descriptions and crop related documents whenever available. • Make fruit available for research involving nutritional studies or creation of value-

added products.

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2 History The University of Saskatchewan has the largest collection of praire fruit varieties and is the coldest location in North America where fruit is being bred. Fruit breeding and research goes back to 1920 at the U of S. In recent years, the U of S has become known for breeding of cherries, blue honeysuckles and apples. These acheivements are possible only because of extensive collections at the U of S. For other fruit crops the most recent improvements were done in the 1970’s which makes collections at other institutions potentially useful for future breeding efforts. This project has helped to preserve, revitalize and utilize this collection and gather additional germplasm.

From the late 1940’s to the late 1970’s seven institutions across the prairie provinces were involved in the Prairie Fruit Breeding Cooperative. Besides the U of S, only the Brooks Research Station, AB and Morden Research Station, MB still have collections of fruit. However, Morden and Brooks research stations are no longer involved in fruit research or breeding and it is uncertain whether these collections will continue. Neither research station has a fruit specialist nor a mandate to do fruit research. As collections at other research stations begin to be disassembled, the collections at the U of S will become the last remaining plant collection of its kind.

The U of S fruit program has perhaps the world’s best collections of Saskatoons, dwarf sour cherries, tetraploid strawberries, and blue honeysuckles (Haskap). It also incudes an impressive collections of prairie apples, plums, strawberries, black Currants, pears, apricots, cherry-plums, sandcherries, chokecherries, mongolian cherries and highbush cranberries. Our breeding program and our collection of fruit have provided the genetic material for new fruit varieties on the prairies, as well as serving as start up material of older varieties for nurseries. By carrying out the Prairie Fruit Genebank project, it is assured that this material will be available for generations to come.

Despite the wet weather conditions in 2010, we have ensured that the germplasm at the University of Saskatchwan is more accessible than ever before. Clear plot plans, labels, and online availability of information has made the germplasm even more available for researchers and breeders. Pruning for propagation has allowed this germplasm to be available should the need arise.

One of the most important tools that has allowed the PFG to fulfill the needs of individuals and organizations is the website(http://fruit.usask.ca/pfg_index.html) . Lists of germplasm and instructions for ordering allow the stock to be easily accessed by everyone. This website also offers a forum to share some of the information and documents accumulated by the U of S Fruit Program over the past 60 years.

http://fruit.usask.ca/pfg_index.html�

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3 Preserving the Collection Preservation of the germplasm includes activities like; keeping weeds in check, preventing sunscald, pest control, cultivation, propagating at risk cultivars, etc. It also includes maintaining identification of cultivars using plot plans and records.

3.1 Genebank Location The Genebank collections are located in Saskatoon, SK, on the University of Saskatchwan campus. This cold climate location is ideal for the success of a PFG. Hardy cultivars are adapted to deal with the specific challenges posed by a cold, continental environment. They are not, however, adapted for warmer climates. While warmer climates do not have challenging winter conditions, there are other environmental factors challenging the plants of those regions. Disease and pest pressure being the most significant. Prairie hardy cultivars often lack resistance to these environmental pressures. For this reason, the preservation of Prairie Hardy cultivars requires a cold northern location.

3.2 Inventory and prioritizing of existing collections At the beginning of 2008, the fruit collection consisted of 17 fruit crops which covered about 25 acres (Figure 1). What makes much of our collection unique is that our hybrids are often commercial cultivars hybridized with cold hardy species, thus enabling the plants to survive Saskatchewan conditions. As we are the coldest place in North America where fruit is bred, we have developed germplasm over several generations which cannot be found anywhere else. Some of our collections are considered ‘World Class’; notably Saskatoons, Haskap and interspecific Strawberries (see Table 5).

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Figure 1: Fruit plantings in 2008. The map above shows only larger plantings. Miscellaneous includes: seabuckthorn, Nanking cherries, double flowered plums, red currants, cherry plums, ornamental cherry hybrids or small amounts of some of the other crops listed above.

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Figure 2: Fruit plots as of Jan 2011. The major areas of expansion were Haskap and Grape. But several areas were renovated or had plants propagated.

Table 1 below indicates the relative importance of our fruit collection when compared to world and other collections in the prairies. Also noted is importance for our breeding program: a single ‘*’ indicates some crosses have been done, but ‘***’ indicates major efforts involved.

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Table 1: Relative Crop Importance

Crop Importance Comments World Prairie Breeding

Apples * *** *** Substantial breeding collection representing 80+ years of breeding effort

Apricots - * * A few prairie cultivars and seedlings

Black Currants - *** - 20 cultivars mostly from Native Fruit Program, likely largest collection on

Prairie

Cherry Plums * - * A dozen old cultivars, somewhat rare but economically not much potential

Chokecherries - * * Unique, collected from the best of PFRA 20 years ago

Haskap *** ** ***

World’s most diverse collection. Only collection of Canadian Haskap with

substantial Japanese and Russian accessions

Hazelnuts * *** ** Rare hybrids between wild Canadian and advanced lines from Oregon State

Highbush Cranberries - - - A few cultivars

Missouri Currants ** ** **

Rather rare collection of 15 cultivars and thousands of their seedlings. This is a

North American species with much larger fruit than black current

Pears - * * Hybrids between 3 species

Plums - * * A couple dozen, uncommon Prairie

cultivars plus seedlings crosses with large fruited BC cultivars

Raspberries * * Collection of hardy cultivars being used in breeding

Sandcherries - - * Collected from wild and growers, perhaps value as an ornamental crop, some long

term potential but needs work

Saskatoons *** *** *** World’s best collection, includes

thousands of seedlings gathered from farmers

Sea Buckthorn For demonstration purposes

Sour Cherries ** *** ***

Very unique hybrids between Mongolian and sour cherries after 60+ years of breeding. Descendants of breeding

programs.

Strawberries *** - **

World’s most diverse and largest collection of interspecific tetraploid hybrids. Value is only for long term

improvement & basic research.

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3.3 Plot Plans Plot plans are essential for preserving the identities of the cultivars and seedlings in the PFG collection. Plot plans including exploded view maps were adopted for to reduce confusion when reviewing the location of plants in the field. Previously plot plans were mostly in old record books and in files. Only a few were on a computer but there was no standard design. Our 6 newest seedling plots had their data entered in this way. Within rows, measurements were taken where each family is located. That way if labels are ever removed we will still be able to identify each plant. Plots scheduled to be removed in the near future were not categorized like this. We will be using this format for all new plantings.

Figure 3: Sample Plot Plan. Data from our 6 newest plantings were put in the same format in Excel. Breeding plots had special maps created for field use. Older records were consolidated

3.4 Field Activities Much of our field activities involved pruning, weeding, and propagation. In particular our apple trees and native fruit collection were greatly revitalized. These areas had been neglected, particularly since the native fruit program had been cancelled 5 years ago.

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Severe flooding hampered field work and tractor access in 2010. Significant time and resources were diverted to pumping water from plots, moving plants which were flooded, and hand weeding where tractor access was impossible. Despite these efforts, flooding has killed some seedlings, however, no significant cultivars have shown damage yet. The plots were ripped by a drainage plow in fall 2010 which we hope will prevent additional flooding from runoff in spring 2011.

3.4.1 Propagating endangered accessions Many of our tree fruits were at risk of dying; especially those over 30 years old. Renovations started in 2008 and continued through 2009 and 2010. Priorities were based not only on the value of the crops but also their condition. Apples and other valuable germplasm are replicated at least twice, preferably on 2 different rootstocks. This redundancy increases the probability of germplasm preservation. The grafting work is summarized in Table 2. Propagation of other species is listed by species in section 2.5.

Table 2: Fruit trees revitalized through grafting from 2008 to 2010.

ID Stock Location Method† Date SX05-02 9-74 JB July 3, 08

TW C#300 19-10-56 N-NW JB Aug. 15, 08 TW SX08-18 19-10-56 NE JB Aug. 15, 08 TW SX08-14 19-10-56 Centre SE JB Aug. 15, 08 TW SX08-13 19-10-56 SW JB Aug. 15, 08 TW SX08-16 10-3-5 JB Aug. 15, 08 TW SX08-17 19-10-75 NW and 19-8-73 base JB Aug. 15, 08

4-5-14 10-6-17 JB Aug. 18, 08 4-5-14 10-3-17 JB Aug. 18, 08

SX 08-19 19-10-57 JB Aug. 20, 08 18-10-32 4-30-18 JB Aug. 25, 08 18-11-5 10-11-18 JB Aug. 25, 08

10s-3-1.3 10-3-3 JB Aug. 14, 09 TW SX08-16 10-3-5 JB Aug. 14, 09 TW SX07-01 19-10-78and77 JB Aug. 17, 09

SX07-02 19-8-75 and 19-8-73 JB Aug. 17, 09 Capilino #1 Apricot 19-2-74.5and 75 JB Aug. 17, 09

Wescot 19-2-77.5 JB Aug. 24, 09 Leo #1 19-2-75.5 JB Aug. 25, 09 Leo #2 19-2-76 JB Aug. 25, 09

Trailman Crab TW 19-10-57SE JB Aug. 25, 09 PF44 TW 19-10-59NW JB Aug. 25, 09 PF47 TW 19-10-59 JB Aug. 25, 09

Transcendant TW 19-1059SE JB Aug. 26, 09 Minn 1728 TW 19-10-59NE JB Aug. 26, 09

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SX10-15 TW 4-1-17W WT May 20, 10 SX10-14 TW 15-8-2 WT May 20, 10 SX09-43 10-7-33.5 and 10-8-33.5 MC June 2, 10

Stoke Red 10-5-2 WT May 11, 10 Brown’s Apple 10-5-3 WT

Michelin 10-5-4 WT May 11, 10 Tremletts Bitter 10-5-6 WT May 11, 10 Bulmer Norman 10-5-7and 10-5-8 WT May 11, 10

Honeycrisp AR7-1-5.7 JB Aug. 16, 10 4-18-42 10-10-7 and10-10-8 JB Aug. 20, 10

10s-1-47.0 10-6-3, 6 JB Aug. 24, 10 10s-2-1.4 10-9-22 and 10-10-26 JB Aug. 24, 10 10s-2-15.5 10-9-22 and 23 JB Aug. 24, 10 10s-3-1.3 10-10-13 and 14 JB Aug. 24, 10 10s-3-2.0 10-6-22 and 23 JB Aug. 24, 10 10s-3-5.6 10-10-17 and 18 JB Aug. 24, 10 10s-3-5.9 10-10-12 and 13 JB Aug. 24, 10

10s-11-19.3 10-10-15 and 16 JB Aug. 24, 10 4-34-25.8 10-9-8 JB Aug. 20, 10 4-36-17.9 10-6-10 and 16 JB Aug. 24, 10 4-36-67.3 10-9-7 JB Aug. 20, 10 4-37-11.9 10-9-24 and 26 JB Aug. 24, 10 4-38-58.9 10-9-18 and 19 JB Aug. 24, 10

†: JB - Jones Bud WT - Whip and Tongue Graft MC – Mini Cleft Graft

3.4.2 Pest and Weed Control In addition to renovations, extensive weeding and pest control was continued from 2008 to present. Pest and weed control is integral to the maintenance of healthy germplasm. Mouse bait was used extensively for rodent control. GF 120 Naturalite, a fruit fly bait containing spinosad, was used in 2009 and 2010 to control fruit fly populations. Some problem patches of Canadian thistle are located on our plots. Lontrel was applied in 2009 and 2010 to control it. Casoron (dichlobenil) was used for seedling establishment in 2008, 2009, and 2010. Casoron is a fall applied pre-emergent that greatly increases the probability of seedling and rooted cutting survival. Hand weeding remains one of the only approaches for collection maintenance on many occasions. It is difficult and time consuming and is replaced with mulching or chemical weed control whenever possible.

3.4.3 Field Labels Metal labels were created for all named tree fruit varieties as well as our advanced tree fruit selections. Because tree fruits can be so long lived, their labels were embosed with a special lettering machine and the labels are held on with wires. Special metal labels were made for identifying advanced selections in seedling fields. These had a ‘matte’ finish that allows pencil to write on them. It seems hard to believe but these ‘pencil on metal’ lables can last for decades. Felt marker lables can fade after a few months if the wrong

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type is used and after a year or two if the right type is chosen. But markers do well on wood, which can rot or crack.

Figure 4:Permanent Tree Tags

3.5 Crop Particulars

3.5.1 Apples Apples had major fireblight problem in our collection and across the province (and actually across Canada and Northern USA). Particularly troublesome was the prairies favourite dwarfing rootstock, Ottawa 3, which seems particularly susceptible. Comparison of susceptible and resistance between our location and growers in Regina indicate there may be at least two strains of fireblight in the province.

It was observed that our germplasm has resistance and susceptible genotypes in the field. When Dr. Bors visited growers in Michigan, he was suprised to hear that ‘Bud 9’ rootstock was their prefered resistant rootstock. Bud 9 was one of the parents used in our rootstock breeding efforts. A Michigan extension agents described it as very rare to have an infected tree ‘stop’ an infection after a few inches. But that phenomenon was observed on many of our varities and seedlings.

Although we had been gearing up to propagate our older trees onto Ottawa 3, the fireblight problem derailed those plans. We have begun to propagate some of our own rootstocks but they need further testing to determine resistance especially to whatever strain may be in the Regina area. It is beyond the scope of this grant to initiate major fireblight screening experiments and breeding for resistance.

To preserve germplasm of apple cultivars in the collection, all essential cultivars are backed up by topworking the accessions onto other apple trees. Most cultivars are

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maintained in at least two locations on the plots. This practice offers a reassuring level of redundancy when considering the preservation of germplasm. Stoolbed maintenance is also performed every spring. Cutting stoolbeds back to the soil preserves the juvenility of the resulting cuttings, increasing rooting percentages. As a result, the U of S stool beds are of considerable juvenility, and are an importand source of rootstock for nurseries and commercial growers.

Pruning is also essential for apple cultivar preservation. Without proper pruning, most apples would develop weak crotches which could split. Without pruning apple trees could potentially disintegrate after several heavy crops. Extensive spring pruning using chainsaws, pneumatic pruners, and hand pruners ensures these cultivars are kept healthy and viable.

Figure 5: Top worked apples. New grafts are on the left, year old grafts on the right. Germplasm is initially preserved in this way, and budgrafted on its own rootstock if it proves

hardy.

3.5.2 Black Currants Our black current collection was ‘bequeathed’ to us from the defunct “Native Fruit Program’. It consist of 2 plots each containing 12 varieties and 3 reps. This collection had been in need of rejuvenation even prior to when we were in charge of it. One rep of Black Currants was renovated in each of the two plantings. Renovation involved drastic prunning, mowing down plants and undercutting portions of the bushes. We will likely keep only the renovated reps and remove the others as this crop is not a high priority with growers. Weeding and cultivation are ongoing to preserve this collection.

3.5.3 Cherry Plums These were successfully propagated and moved to a new location. As the new plantings become well established we will remove the original planting.

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3.5.4 Haskap Older fields are being eliminated as newer fields come into bearing, but important germplasm was saved. The Russian cultivar collection and a few superior advanced selections from block 6 & 7 were relocated and the rest of the plants destroyed. 6 rows were in block 11 has also been removed. A large plot was established for the wild haskap gathered as part of Dr. Bors’s sabbatical. Work with Haskap is ongoing as part of ADF # 20060140 and more details are included in that report.

3.5.5 Hazelnuts The hybrid hazelnut patch is used for seedling production for our cooperative breeding program with growers. Ongoing weeding, cultivation and pest control is used to preserve this collection. These hybrids are very unique and could be someday result in commercially viable varieties for Saskatchewan. They are hybrids between cold hardy breeding lines of Les Kerr (former head of the Saskatoon Forestry Farm in the 1960s to 1980s) and advanced breeding line from the Oregon breeding program (largest hazelnut breeding program in the world). These hybrids are not quite hardy but nut quality is better than any others that can be grown here. By selling and distributing these seedlings throughout the prairies, we hope to find worthwhile plants in the next generation. Growers sign an agreement with us that allows us the sole rights to propagate and release new varieties from their stock. See appendix. Each year during this project over 1000 seedlings were raised and sold to growers. Proceeds from these plant sales added additional funding for this project.

3.5.6 Pears Many pear seedlings showed severe damage in the last 3 years, especially in 2010, but most named varieties were ok. The surviving seedlings are being maintained and will be evaluated when they are old enough to fruit. Pear rootstocks were propagated in 2010 to graft the cultivars, many of which are 30 years old.

It was observed in 2010 that some of our pears may be dwarfs, which is not known to occur with pears. We are using cold hardy species that aren’t usually used in pear breeding, so perhaps no other breeding program has used the combination of parents that we have. Unfortunately, prairie hardy pears are of horrible quality; hopefully some worthwhile varieties from our program will emerge in the years to come. But if our pears are useful as dwarfing rootstocks, perhaps royalty income could be generated from the release of a rootstock variety. It could also be useful for landscaping business for rootstocks of ornamental flowering pears.

3.5.7 Plums The plums are not in immediate danger but few of them can provide worthwhile scions or budwood. Many of the varieties that were on their own roots were propagated in 2009 by cuttings. But because of the heavy rains these were held over to be planted in 2011.

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Our seedling plums are coming into bearing. These plums are crosses between several large fruit BC varieties and our prairie plums. We now have hardy plums with red flesh and mild flavors but unfortunately the 1st plums that have started fruiting are not large. In most fruit crops, small size is dominant and may take 2 or 3 generations to significantly increase size. The cultivar collection is being used as ‘standards’ to compare the seedlings.

3.5.8 Raspberries In 2007, our raspberry varieties were crossed with Ag Canada breeding lines at the Ag Canada research facility in Nova Scotia. In 2009 we received the seeds after over a year of negotiations between U of SK and Ag Canada Lawyers. The seeds were germinated in 2010 and approximately 400 seedlings were fall planted. Another 200 were too small at the time and may be planted in 2011.

A collection of primocane raspberry varieties (Fall bearers) are also being maintained. These could be an important source of germplasm for future breeding. Some of these advanced selection from breeding done over 20 years ago at the U of SK.

3.5.9 Sandcherries Most of the sandcherry patch (~100 plants) was renovated in the spring of 2010. Plants with black coloured fruit (wild type) were cut down to the ground. Those that had yellow and red fruit (very rare) were left intact, in hopes that these would cross pollinate and give a higher percentage of brightly coloured progeny. Unfortunately heavy rains occurred during bloom time and fruit set was very low. Now the ‘wild types’ are in effect renovated and healthy while the handful of desirable brightly-coloured types are in need of renovation.

3.5.10 Saskatoons Two reps of the Saskatoon cultivar patch (16 Cultivars) were cut back for renovation in 2008 and 2009. It was thought that by renovating one rep per year that this will serve as an excellent demonstration of renovation in a couple of years.

In 1998 and 1999 the Native Fruit Program placed ads in the ‘Western Producer’ asking readers to send fruit of their favourite wild Saskatoons. This resulted in over 2000 seedlings being field planted in 33 families in Block 16 a few years later. In 2009 and 2010 this collection was evaluated to determine its value. The following figures summarize the evaluations that were done. These figures were included in talks to the Saskatchewan Fruit Growers, the Saskatchewan Society of Arborists. Also, Dr. Bors was an invited speaker at the 2010 International Horticulture Congress and spoke about “Possibilities and limitations of Amelanchier alnifolia (Saskatoon) germplasm”.

In the early 2000’s when the ‘Native Fruit Program’ was in its heyday, upright harvesters were the most common harvesters used by the more progressive Saskatoon growers.

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Growers considered varieties, such as Thiessen, with narrow upright growth to be best since it more easily fit into machinery (Figure 6). By 2007, most leaders of the Saskatoon industry had switched to sideways harvesters. Growers have also switched to planting more of ‘Northline’ rather than ‘Theissen’ because of the suitability of ‘Northline’ for sideways harvesting.

Figure 6:Upright and sideways harvesters. Sideways harvesters are gaining popularity because it causes less fruit damage and can better handle spreading type bushes. The above are entry level type machines that require a tractor to pull them. More expensive models are self-propelled. The sideways harvester above was used in our Saskatoons in 2009. The University has since purchased one for future fruit research.

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Figure 7: Guidelines for classifying bush shape were drawn from an Ag.Canada Plant Breeder's Rights document that gave generic descriptions for shrubs. At present there are no PBR

descriptors for Saskatoons.

Figure 8: Bush shape of Saskatoon Seedlings. 772 seedlings were evaluated from 33 families. 'Arching' and 'bushy rounded' shapes were considered most desirable for sideways harvesting. Those shapes also had better sunlight penetration and air movement than ‘upright bushy’ or ‘narrow upright’ and likely lead to better fruit quality and perhaps lower disease incidence.

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Figure 9: Survey of Saskatoon seedling heights. The desirable bush size was estimated to be greater than 1.5m and less than 2.3m. Those heights are ideal for sideways harvesters and easier

hand picking.

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Figure 10: Saskatoon seedlings in Block 16 after harvesting with a sideways harvester. The row on the left has a spreading canopy shape and has no damage while the right row with upright

canopy shape is highly damaged.

Table 3 Evaluation of berry flavour and yield by row of the Saskatoon seedling orchard in Block 16. Yield was loosely based on number of containers which held approximately 10kgs of berries. Because we were borrowing a harvester for one day only, we had to bulk each row and could not stop to evaluate individual families. This was done in 2009. Because these were bulk fruit this ‘fast’ study is an estimate of the potential for this field.

Row Yield flavour notes 1 70 2.7 2 70 2.3 tangy 3 60 3.3 sweet 4 40 1.7 bland 5 150 1.0 6 80 2.3 8 50 2.0 mealy, seedy

10 60 3.0 Very upright, a bit dry 11 70 1.7 like dirt 12 70 1.7 almondy 14 80 3.0 nice flavour 16 60 1.5 bland, low sugar 17 60 2.0 18 60 1.0 very poor flavour 19 80 1.8 some fruit big 20 70 1.7 little 'off' flavour 21 20 2.7 24 60 1.0 grass flavour 25 100 1.0 seedy

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26 60 1.0 seedy (prob same as row 25) 28 70 2.7 sweet and tangy 29 50 2.7 30 50 2.7 31 70 2.5 interesting 32 60 2.2 sour 35 20 2.8 nice texture 36 50 3.3 firm

Average 64.5 2.1

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Figure 11: Comparisons of our better tasting Saskatoons to previous studies of Saskatoon cultivars. Weight, pH and Brix (sugar measurement) were taken for those berries deemed ‘good’

or ‘very good’ tasting. These were compared to results from a ‘Native Fruit Program’ study

The evaluations of the Saskatoon seedling field indicate that there may be valuable germplasm in the collection. It may especially be important in the future since growers

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have switched to different harvesting machines. Our quick survey gave us a clear idea regarding which traits are rare vs. those that are more common. Ideal bush shape was only 20% of the population. Very good flavour was only 17% but ideal height was fairly common at 47%. The odds of finding a seedling with all 3 desirable attributes would be .20 x .17 x.47 = 0.0159 or 1.6%. It may be possible in the future to find some selections worthy of releasing as new varieties in the seedling field. 2010 was too wet and full of diseases to allow meaningful selections for fruit quality. Perhaps when the renovated cultivar trials are back in production we can have standards to compare to this collection.

In terms of maintenance, ongoing cultivation is being used to maintain this field. A severe Canada thistle problem has also required the application of herbicides in 2009 and 2010. Dead branches caused by the sporadic damage of the mechancical harvester have been cleared. Seeds from Saskatoon seedlings was collected in 2009 as a backup of germplasm.

3.5.11 Seabuckthorn The seabuckthorn collection consists of a few cultivars and has minimal use as a demonstration plot for students and visitors. Some East German clones may be of interest and are being maintained through cultivation and weeding.

We have received some seabuckthorn seeds from Russia via Northern Vigour Berries (a SK fruit grower, Betty Forbes) which have been germinated for planting in 2012.

3.5.12 Sour Cherries Block 7 North is currently an old sour cherry field containing the original ‘Romance’ Series Cherries. We will be using these plants for a renovation study in 2011, originally planned for 2010. Rows will be cut down, which will provide observations as to how the older romance cherries will perform under renovation conditions. This could prove to be valuable information for the sour cherry industry where many romance series cherries are planted, and may need to be renovated in the coming decades.

Mongolian cherries scattered in the two apple orchard are overgrown. Some are over 25 years old! Still, they have value in breeding to cross with pure sour cherries as a source of cold hardiness and dwarf bush size. These still need to be propagated by seed to allow the mother plants to be removed. Seeds from named cultivars and advanced selections were collected in 2009 and 2010.

3.5.13 Choke Cherries, Highbush Cranberries, Missouri Currants These plantings are well established and are of low priority. General preservation maintenance includes cultivation and weed control. The chokecherry field was affected by flooding this year. Despite efforts to speed up drainage by digging channels for water to flow, some varieties on the northwest corner were severely damaged. Drainage ripping has since been performed on the plots. We will be monitoring the affected plants for new growth in 2011

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3.5.14 Strawberries In preparation for renovation of block 7, seeds were gathered and processed from the better interspecific strawberries and bulked into categories based on species combinations: F.nilgerensis hybrids, F. moschata hybrids, F.vesca hybrids, and complex hybrids. These are all 4x strawberries that are descendants of plants for Dr. Bors’s Ph.D. thesis research. Although the field planting had hundreds of families, it was decided that keeping track of each berry’s exact lineage was not worth the effort since this collection is a long ways from having commercial potential.

Controlled crosses were also done between 20 superior clones. These clones will be kept and the seeds germinated.

Figure 12. Tetraploid strawberries that were saved as bulk seeds. These have unusual flavour and disease resistance but require many generations to introgress into cultivars.

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4 Collection Availability and Distribution Making the germplasm available to interested breeders and researchers is a two tiered process, including both field work, and online activity. In the field, activities like stool bed pruning, budwood pruning, rooted cutting propagation and seed collection ensures that the germplasm is available upon request. Lists of the germplasm in our collection are posted online for general review. Contact information and order forms have been posted online to facilitate germplasm requests.

4.1 Stool Beds Stool bed maintenance is required to increase or preserve the juvenility of germplasm, which in turn increases rooting efficiency of bare root cuttings. Without stool beds most cultivars would not be able to be propagated in any form other than grafting. The PFG maintains several stoolbeds including: Ottawa #3 apple rootstock, V3 apple rootstock, bud 9 apple rootstock, bud 491 apple rootstock, p2 apple rootstock, p22 apple rootstock, Ottawa #8 apple rootstock, 21-42-31 apple rootstock, V1 apple rootstock, Carmine Jewel Cherry, Juliet Cherry, Cupid Cherry, Romeo Cherry, Valentine Cherry, and Crimson Passion Cherry. These beds are pruned down every spring. We also have stoolbeds our own apple rootstocks which are being maintained.

4.2 Budwood Branches from trees which contain buds which are ideal for grafting are referred to as budwood. Budwood is sometimes produced naturally by a tree, especially if it has been damaged by heavy crops or animals, but usually specialized pruning is required to induce the budwood production. The PFG maintains some commonly requested cultivars for budwood every year. Most of these cultivars are recently released apple cultivars. Requests for budwood require that a cultivar be specially pruned that season.

4.3 Online Availability The online component of the genebank enhances the availability of the germplasm in our collection. By posting lists(http://www.fruit.usask.ca/pfg_index.html ) of the cultivars maintained by the PFG it is possible for researchers around the world to view our collection. These lists are compiled for all major crops using data from multiple sources in the University of Saskatchewan Fruit Program files. These lists represent a significant investment of resources due to the volume of data which needed to be converted to electronic format. Figure 13 gives an example of one of these lists.

http://www.fruit.usask.ca/pfg_index.html�

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Figure 13:Example of a Germplasm List

The next step for making germplasm available was the online infrastructure necessary for request. For this purpose, an online request form was written. A specific type of webpage known as a php page(Figure 14) was used to create this request form. The requests are diverted to the email of PFG staff to be sorted and filled. Contact information was also listed for PFG staff to facilitate personal requests.

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Figure 14: Online request form(http://www.fruit.usask.ca/requestform.html)

4.4 Distribution Germplasm has been distributed to growers and nurseries across the prairies over the last several years. Approximately 80% of the distribution is to Saskatchewan growers and nurseries. The germplasm is distributed in the form of budwood, scions, seedlings, rooted cuttings and seeds. Budwood is a branch which contains buds from a desired cultivar which can be grafted on appropriate rootstock. In most cases the budded variety is allowed to grow as the main trunk, leaving the roostock as supporting structure. Scionwood are branches which are grafted on to receptive cultivars whole. This is done using various grafting techniques including whip and tongue grafting. Rooted cuttings are made by rooting juvenile wood from the parent trees. Table 4 lists the germplasm distributed since 2008.

http://www.fruit.usask.ca/requestform.html�

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Table 4: Tree fruit Germplasm Distributed over the last 3 years as budwood and scion. Virtually all of the newer apple orchards being planted in Saskatchewan originate from our budwood.

Cultivar Form Quantity (#buds, scions, etc.) 2008 2009 2010

Apples 4-5-14 Budwood 43 40 15 4-5-24 Budwood 20 20 4-6-48 Budwood 10 60 30 4-10-36 Budwood 54 80 5 4-10-43 Budwood 106 100 8 4-11-48 Budwood 167 248 51 4-13-43 Budwood 256 154 65 4-15-50 Budwood 40 13 25 4-16-14 Budwood 15 4-18-31 Budwood 5 4-19-7 Budwood 15 15 4-21-46 Budwood 5 5-2-43 Budwood 15 5-2-52 Budwood 77 105 8 5-4-14 Budwood 5 60 5-6-33 Budwood 5 50 5-12-23 Budwood 5 5-19-7 Budwood 30 10 5-19-20 Budwood 15 18-4-6 Budwood 15 10 18-6-11 Budwood 25 10 18-7-9 Budwood 15 94 18-7-10 Budwood 15 20 18-8-9 Budwood 3 60

18-10-32 Budwood 2445 1470 350 18-17-11 Budwood 60 10 18-19-13 Budwood 15 18-22-23 Budwood 15 60

Prairie Sun Budwood 440 620 30 Goodland Budwood 237 100

Honeycrisp Budwood 21 8 Norkent Budwood 29 105 55 Norland Budwood 5

PF51 Budwood 40 Ott #3 Softwood Cuttings 2000

Plums

Brookgold Scionwood/Budwood 20 Ptit #5 Scionwood/Budwood 10

Geen Elf Scionwood/Budwood 10 10 Patterson Pride Scionwood/Budwood 10

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Geddes Scionwood/Budwood 10 Prairie Scionwood/Budwood 10 6

Pembina Scionwood/Budwood 10 Perfection Scionwood/Budwood 10 Brookred Scionwood/Budwood 10

Elite Scionwood/Budwood 10 Supreme Scionwood/Budwood 10

Acme Scionwood/Budwood 10 Ptitsin #9 Scionwood/Budwood 10 Fofonoff Scionwood/Budwood 10 PG14-22 Scionwood/Budwood 10 PG18-4 Scionwood/Budwood 10

Canwood Scionwood/Budwood 10 3

Cherry Plums Manor Scionwood/Budwood 10 Dura Scionwood/Budwood 10

New Oka Scionwood/Budwood 10

Pear Thomas Scionwood/Budwood 50 4-1-47 Scionwood/Budwood 10 8

Apricot

Wescot Scionwood/Budwood 10

Sour Cherries Juliet Softwood Cuttings 519 114 Cupid Softwood Cuttings 278 108

Valentine Softwood Cuttings 232 133 Crimson Passion Softwood Cuttings 244 74

Romeo Softwood Cuttings 150 34 Carmine Jewel Softwood Cuttings 25

Haskap

Borealis Softwood Cuttings 111 Tundra Softwood Cuttings 102

9-15 Softwood Cuttings 100

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5 Building the collection Making more germplasm available to growers and breeders will enhance the PFG’s role as a source of prairie hardy germplasm. Efforts have been made to reach out to individuals, nurseries, and organizations in order to obtain additional cultivars for our collection.

It should be noted that increasing the availability of germplasm poses unique challenges in northern climates. The genetic variation in fruiting plants in general is extensive, however, most of this variation is contained in plants which are not hardy enough for our winters. This poses a unique challenge as we diversify our collection. One way to approach this problem is through breeding. By obtaining diverse, non-hardy germplasm and crossing it with hardy germplasm, we are able to produce seedlings which are hardy and carry the diverse genetics. An example of this type of genetic preservation can be seen with our plums. Rick Sawatzky has crossed our hardy plums with red fleshed, mild plums, usually grown in California. The offspring have the genetic background from the good tasting California plums with the hardiness from Canadian plums.

5.1 Institutional relationships

5.1.1 Brooks, AB Brooks Alberta has ceased their fruit program. Dr. Chris Nesser who had previously run this fruit program sent us budwood of Mongolian Cherry hybrids. Also we have Nanking cherries that Dr. Bors gathered seeds from.

5.1.2 Old College, AB A list of tree fruits at Olds College was sent to Rick Sawatzky who requested budwood of a dozen varieties that do not have. They gave the budwood to Dr. Bors at a conference in Jan 2011.

5.1.3 Unity, SK We received Apple budwood from Jim Coutts, who is continuing his father’s amateur apple breeding program in Unity Saskatchewan. The elder Mr. Coutts had worked at the U of S decades ago in Horticulture which inspired him to have his own breeding program. These and other accessions acquired in 2008, 2009, and 2010 are listed in Appendix 1.

5.1.4 Morden, MB The wheels of the federal government turn slowly. We received listings of germplasm and combed through them and made requests, but have yet to receive anything from Morden. Later I was also told they had promised to send material to the Ag Canada Clonal Genebank in Ontario. The shipment to Ontario did not materialize either. Late in 2008/ early 2009, while Dr. Bors was on sabbatical, Ag Canada put out a request for ‘bids’ for the entire Morden collection which included fruit, roses, trees, everything as one big package. Linda Mathews, Who had been one

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of the fruit programs technicians was asked to be on the committee to advise on this. She asked my advice and relayed my 3 big concerns: Why didn’t they come to our program as the only active fruit program in the prairies? Why don’t they break it up by crop? Why the short notice? (Dr. Bors found out about the call for proposals only a couple days before the due date, and he was due to go away). Despite the delays, the committee/organization that is charged with relocating the germplasm has contacted Dr. Bors and wants him to visit in Summer of 2011, to help evaluate and take worthwhile germplasm.

5.1.5 Vavilov Institute, Russia Most of this germplasm was Haskap seeds which is mentioned in the Haskap ADF reports. We also received some ‘Arctic Kiwi’ seeds. These were germinated but do not seem to be very healthy. It is uncertain if they will survive.

5.1.6 Ag Canada’s: Canadian Clonal Genebank, ON Dr. Bors visited them in summer of 2008. It was determined that they were not set up sufficiently to be a reliable backup for our collection, particularly not for more cold crops like Haskap and Saskatoons. We have sent them plums and apples in the recent past.

In 2010, Dr. Bors was invited to be one of 4 members of an external review panel for the institution. Results of that investigation are confidential. Dr. Bors contributed many suggestions.

5.2 Grapes Grape Germplasm continues to be received and utilized by graduate student Tyler Kaban. It is expected that only a small number of his parental material would be hardy here. However his Canadian Hardy accessions will be kept as well as any hardy worthwhile seedlings that result from his project. Tyler has been in communication with amateur grape breeders in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba and has collected accessions from them. Much of his almost hardy material is from programs in Minnesota. We are retaining 20 named cultivars and 10 wild accessions for future breeding, but have already incorporated much more material into our program. The named cultivars are in various collections around the world and there is no special need for us to preserve them, except where we need them as parents. However, much of the Vitis riparia hardy germplasm is very rare and some of this collection we are the only ones with it. So we will be maintaining those accessions.

5.3 Strawberries Strawberry seedling lines had been in refrigerator storage for six years and were in danger of having reduced germination. A few had been germinated in 2007 but more were done in 2008. Table 5 lists individual clones resulting from a recent project. Table 6 shows seedling lines that were germinated because of this project. These were planted in spring of 2009.

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Table 5:Strawberry Crosses

I.D. Plants I.D. Plants I.D. Plants (PHxPA)xVB1 3 G8-141 1 G8-32 1 (VB1xPH)xPFxVB1xPF 4 G8-142 1 G8-34 1 (VB1xPH)xPFxVB1XPFVW12 2 G8-143 1 G8-35 1 5-2-1 4 G8-145 1 G8-37 1 AAEE-1 4 G8-146 1 G8-38 1 AAEE-2 2 G8-148 1 G8-4 1 AAEE-3 4 G8-149 1 G8-40 1 AAEE-4 4 G8-15 1 G8-41 1 AAEE-5 2 G8-150 1 G8-42 1 AB6 1 G8-152 1 G8-44 1 Aquamish 50 2 G8-154 1 G8-45 1 B01 1 G8-155 1 G8-46 1 B11 1 G8-157 1 G8-49 1 B15 1 G8-158 1 G8-50 1 B27 1 G8-159 1 G8-51 1 B3 1 G8-160 1 G8-52 1 B47 1 G8-161 1 G8-6 1 G8-1 1 G8-164 1 G8-60 1 G8-101 1 G8-166 1 G8-63 1 G8-102 1 G8-167 1 G8-64 1 G8-103 1 G8-168 1 G8-65 1 G8-105 1 G8-169 1 G8-66 1 G8-107 1 G8-170 1 G8-68 1 G8-108 1 G8-171 1 G8-7 1 G8-11 1 G8-172 1 G8-71 1 G8-113 1 G8-172 1 G8-72 1 G8-114 1 G8-173 1 G8-73 1 G8-115 1 G8-174 1 G8-75 1 G8-120 1 G8-175 1 G8-77 1 G8-124 1 G8-176 1 G8-79 1 G8-128 1 G8-177 1 G8-80 1 G8-129 1 G8-178 1 G8-81 1 G8-13 1 G8-179 1 G8-82 1 G8-130 1 G8-18 1 G8-83 1 G8-131 1 G8-19 1 G8-84 1 G8-132 1 G8-20 1 G8-85 1 G8-134 1 G8-21 1 G8-88 1 G8-136 1 G8-22 1 G8-9 1 G8-137 1 G8-23 1 G8-91 1 G8-138 1 G8-25 1 G8-96 1

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G8-14 1 G8-26 1 G8-98 1 G8-14 1 G8-27 1 L4 1 G8-30 1 ON25 1 G8-31 1 ON27 1

Strawberry clones in our greenhouse resulted from a recent project to introgress rare species into cultivars. Most of these are very rare hybrids that are interspecific hybrids of three or more species. B series are the best tetraploids after five years of selection, while G8 series are their offspring that have be treated with colchicine to become octoploids. These hybrids can then be crossed with commercial strawberries which are also octoploids. These crosses have a much greater chance of having fertile offspring.

Table 6: Germinated strawberries

I.D. Plants I.D. Plants I.D. Plants

225-8X 15 F5 29 ON29 1 A26 op 23 F6 4 ON31 1 A70 32 F7 20 ON33 1 B-10-4 Red 5 F8 13 ON34 1 B20 op 32 F9 3 ON36 1 B206 32 N3 x V1 F2 32 ON37 1 B211a 8 N3 x V5 F2 (bulk) 23 ON4 1 B211b 8 OH34110 11 ON5 1 B212 24 Row8ProBNIL4xN1 32 ON8C 1 B218 27 RV-5 25 Parkside Hwy 40 1 B219 32 S-1-1 28 Q11 1 B220 32 S-1-2 9 Q13 1 B221 2X 29 S-1-3 32 Q2 1 B221 bulk 19 S-1-4 26 Sk21 1 B223 27 S-1-6 1 T4237 1 B226 12 S-1-7 32 VB13-1 1 B227 32 S-1-8 8 VB2xAB 1 B228 8X 31 S-1-B 28 VB2xNIL-1 1 B232 26 S-2-1 15 VW54x111W49xB 1 B232 x bulk 64 (2) S-2-2 31 VW6xPEN 1 B233 23 S-2-3 19 ON2 2 Bulk 22 S-24 32 S-1-2 2 California 3 Seascape 4 Sk29 2 F12 57 (2) Unknown 8 VB10-2 2 F13 12 VB1 x NIL - 1 6 VB1xPF 2

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F15 29 Vb101 x bulk F. vesca 14 PF Vesca 3 F16 3 VB13 - 2 5 S-1-8 3 F20 12 VB13 x PF 19 VB13xPF 3 F22 11 VB2 x NIL - 1 22 ON1 4 F23 32 VCV x VIR2 (bulk) 27 ON3 4 F24 12 VIR #1 11 VW54x111W49 4 F25 16 VIR #10 14 RV-5 5 F26 7 VIR #2 4 RV-8 5 F27 28 VIR #3 11 Unknown 5 F28 9 VIR #5 20 VB13-2 5 F29 19 VIR #7 9 F30 12 VIR #8 6 F32 12 VIR #9 10 F33 7 VW53x111w49 F34 6 VW54x111w49 29 F35 10 VW54x14W49 32 F36 2 VW54x20DNPJ100 21 VW54x49xBulk Vesca 7 WhiteVB2xBulkVesca 15

5.4 Apples Pollen from non-hardy apples was ordered from the genebank in Harrow Ontario in 2010. This pollen was crossed with hardy prairie apples as summarized in Table 7. The seeds from this cross are currently stratifying. It is hoped that these crosses will allow us to preserve the genetics from these apples at the prairie fruit genebank. Hardy apples including Collet, Rosybrook and Sweet Sixteen were ordered from nurseries in BC.

Table 7:Apple Crosses Incorporating Non-Hardy Genetics

Female Parent Male Parent Kerr Michelin Kerr Yarlington Mill Kerr Tremletts Bitter Kerr Stokes Red

Exeter Stokes Red Exeter Yarlington Mill Exeter Tremletts Bitter

Kingston Black Autumn Delight Kingston Black Exeter Kingston Black Kerr

Muscadet de dieppe Exeter Muscadet de dieppe Kerr

4-10-43 Tremletts Bitter 4-10-43 Brown’s Apple

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4-6-48 Brown’s Apple 4-6-48 Tremletts Bitter

5.5 Sabbatical Acquisitions Also acquired during 2008 were seeds of wild Canadian fruit gathered during Bob Bors sabbatical. Although the Sabbatical focused on gathering Haskap, seeds of other species were also gathered. Information on Haskap collections can be seen on the final report for ADF#20060140. Other species gathered were: Strawberry, Saskatoon, Raspberry, and Currants as these might be of use in breeding. Other species gathered in low numbers included cloudberry, blueberry, aronia, wintergreen, bilberry, loganberry are more likely to serve as demonstrations for students.

Figure 15: Wild fruits gathered while on sabbatical. While small, some of these may be useful for breeding improved cold hardiness, improved flavours, and perhaps a higher nutritional value.

6 Information Resource Development

6.1 Historical Documents Documents on file at the U of S have been scanned and converted to convenient electronic formats. These documents were previously not made available to the public in any form. These documents can be found at http://www.fruit.usask.ca/resources.html and are summarized in Table 8.

http://www.fruit.usask.ca/resources.html�

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Table 8: Fruit Related Documents

Title Date Author Organization Description Edible Apples in Prairie Canada

1990 Roger Vick The Friends of the Garden, University

of Alberta Devonian Botanic Garden

A comprehensive list including hardiness, disease resistance, comments and

descriptions.

University of Saskatchewan

Fruit Introductions

1960 C.F. Patterson University of Saskatchewan

A list of cultivars released by the U of S in 1960. Includes Parentage and

descriptions.

Notes on Sandcherry x Plum Hybrids

1965 Unknown University of Saskatchewan

Descriptions of the Sandcherry-Plum hybrids in

our collection.

Notes on Cooking with Sandcherry x

Plum Hybrids

1966 D.R. Robinson


Cooking tests and brief descriptions of physical properties of whole and

processed fruit.

Hort-Facts: Apple Cultivars

1985 C. Stushnoff, T. Ward, R. Sawatzky


Hardiness and disease resistance ratings as well as

descriptions of common prairie apple cultivars.

Some horticultural descriptions as well.

Hort-Facts: Fruit

Varieties 1976 S.H. Nelson,

K.C. Turner, and D.R. Robinson


A list of recommended fruit varieties with descriptions of fruit, their relative hardiness,

as well as physical fruit characteristics.

Tree Fruits

Grown in Prairie Orchards

1946 W.R. Leslie Experimental Station Morden, Manitoba

Variety notes on Apples, Apple-crabs, Sand Cherries, Sour Cherries, Pears, Plums

and Plum hybrids.

6.2 Database Initial reports regarding PFG indicated the use of a database software that was slated for open-source release. This software was designed to link the worlds genetic collections into one open source searchable data base. This software provides a template into which information about each cultivar can be added, and allows this information to be searchable.

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However, this software was not released. The PFG continues to update it’s own records in the hopes that this software becomes available for open source additions.

Some information about cultivars has begun to be added in a grin-type format (http://fruit.usask.ca/pfg_apples.html). The information included in these cultivar descriptions includes parentage, release date and organization, cultivar name, pictures where available, and notes compiled from several reliable publications. This information, however, is not searchable as it would have been in GRIN. Having the information about these cultivars all compiled on one page provides quick, easy reference and is valuable tool for growers and breeders.

6.3 PFG Website

6.3.1 Training Our technician, Peter Reimer, has taken an introductory course in adobe Dreamweaver, an application used to create websites. Our computer has been upgraded for graphic capabilities. Dreamweaver, photoshop and other programs needed for website building have been installed.

6.3.2 Photography Physical descriptions are important for fruit crops. The physical appearance of fruit is important for the marketing fruit. In the past, physical descriptions were text based. We have begun to catalogue our crops photographically (http://www.flickr.com/photos/43363650@N06/sets/72157625515233652/ ) to better serve this purpose.

6.3.3 Website Layout The PFG website (http://fruit.usask.ca/pfg_index.html) is linked with the U of S fruit program, but both sites maintain their unique functions. The PFG website focuses more on all prairie hardy cultivars, recent and historical, which are contained within our collection, and the ways in which individuals and organizations can access them.

Main Page (http://fruit.usask.ca/pfg_index.html)

•

Each crop includes a brief description of the collection and an excel list of the cultivars which are available for exchange.

Genetic Resources

o Haskap

o Saskatoon

o Prunus

http://fruit.usask.ca/pfg_apples.html�

http://www.flickr.com/photos/43363650@N06/sets/72157625515233652/�



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o Apples

o Other Crops

•

This section describes the ways in which germplasm can be exchanged with the PFG. It includes instructions for donating and requesting germplasm. It also describes some of the aspects involved with international exchange.

Genetic Exchange

•

Provides a list of crops which can be harvested for studies, and instructions for obtaining these crops.

Nutritional Studies

•

Includes scanned and white-balanced documents pertaining to the cultivars in our collection. Some of these documents are over 60 years old and very rare. They have been posted online in the hopes that this information can be shared, and propagated. This information might not be available to researchers otherwise.

Resources

A list of recommended books is also listed. These books were used as taxonomical, horticultural, and botanical references

•

Provides links to other genebanks and website which include information about diverse variety of fruiting crops.

Links

•

Enables interation between the PFG and other organizations

Contact

6.4 Extension events Thus far, The Prairie Fruit genebank has been mentioned at several grower meetings. Dr. Bors will be giving a tour and talk to the Prairie Plant Society in February, and we are planning to have a summer tour of the genebank in 2009.

A workshop to show ‘topworking’ is also being planned. Apple Trees were already drastically prunned in 2008 to allow accessions from Morden to be grafted onto them in 2009.

42

7 Fruit Exchange and Analysis Fruit has been shared with numerous organizations and associations over the last three years. This has involved harvesting, sorting and some initial processing steps, especially in the case of cherries. Fruit is stored in a -40C walk in freezer at the College of Agriculture and Bioresources on the University of Saskatchewan campus. The -40C freezer allows us to store fruit for several years at this temperature.

7.1 Cherries Over 500lbs of Cherries have been made available to various research groups over the last several years. This fruit has been used for research regarding the chemical composition of our advanced sour cherry cultivars and for studies involving value added processing as part of ADF project #20090405. Extensive chemical and physical analysis has also been performed on the U of S advanced selections and named cultivars, also as part of this grant. This information can be found in the final report for grant #

7.2 Haskap Over 200lb of Haskap has been provided to individuals and companies looking into value added processing. These companies include Gerber foods, Souleio foods, and a number of wine makers in Manitoba and Ontario. Extensive chemical and physical analysis of Haskap has also been performed as part of ADF Grant # 20060140

7.3 Saskatoons Large quantities of Saskatoons were mechanically harvested in 2009. This fruit is held available for food and chemical analysis.

43

Appendix 1: Germplasm Received by the U of S Fruit Program

Accession Tree Fruit Genus Species Variety form Origin

SX08-01 Sandcherry Prunus besseyi seed Swift Current, SK

SX08-02 Sandcherry Prunus besseyi seed Winnipeg, MB SX08-03 Sandcherry Prunus besseyi seed

SX08-04 Sea Buckthorn Hippophae rhamnoides male clone Grounds Nursery, U of S

SX08-05 Nanking Cherry Prunus tomentosa seedling

SX08-06 Sour Cherry Prunus cerasus scion CDC Brooks,AB



SX08-09 Sour Cherry Prunus cerasus Walter's Choice scion CDC Brooks,AB

SX08-10 Sour Cherry Prunus cerasus Maha's Sweetheart scion CDC Brooks,AB

SX08-11 Sour Cherry Prunus cerasus Lloyd's Snack scion CDC Brooks,AB

SX08-12 Sour Cherry Prunus cerasus Simone's Cherry Pie scion CDC

Brooks,AB SX08-13 Apple Malus domestica C#xxx budwood Unity, SK SX08-14 Apple Malus domestica C#yyy budwood Unity, SK SX08-15 Apple Malus domestica C#zzz budwood Unity, SK SX08-16 Apple Malus domestica C#aaa budwood Unity, SK SX08-17 Pear Pyrus budwood Unity, SK SX08-18 Apple Malus domestica C#bbb budwood Unity, SK SX08-19 Apple Malus domestica Hybernal budwood Shaunavon,SK SX08-20 Black Currant Ribes nigra seedling Broderick,SK SX08-21 Black Currant Ribes nigra seedling Broderick,SK SX08-22 Black Currant Ribes nigra seedling Broderick,SK

SX08-23 Nanking Cherry Prunus tomentosa seed CDC Brooks,AB

SX09-01 Apricot Prunus armeniaca Capilano #1 Budwood Edmonton, AB

SX09-02 Raspberry Rubus idaeus Glen Ample x Red Mammoth seed Nova Scotia

SX09-03 Raspberry Rubus idaeus K06-1 x Red Bounty seed Nova Scotia

SX09-04 Raspberry Rubus idaeus K06-1 x Red Mammoth Seed Nova Scotia


SX09-06 Raspberry Rubus idaeus K06-2 x Red Mammoth seed Nova Scotia


44




SX09-11 Raspberry Rubus idaeus K06-6 x Cowichan seed Nova Scotia





SX09-16 Raspberry Rubus idaeus Glen Ample x Red Bounty seed Nova Scotia

SX09-17 Chokecherry Aronia melanocarpa op seed seed Leningrad, Russia

SX09-18 Chokecherry Aronia melanocarpa op seed seed Leningrad, Russia

SX09-19 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea op Pervenec seed St. Petersburg, Russia

SX09-20 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea 807-4 x Pervenec seed St. Petersburg, Russia

SX09-21 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea 807-4 x 639-2 seed St. Petersburg, Russia

SX09-22 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea 639-11 x Gulik seed St. Petersburg, Russia

SX09-23 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea 807-4 x Erakingra seed St. Petersburg, Russia

SX09-24 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea Kamchadalka x Gulik-2 seed St. Petersburg,

Russia

SX09-25 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea Pervenec x Gulik-2 seed St. Petersburg, Russia

SX09-26 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea 639-2 x Firstborn seed St. Petersburg, Russia

SX09-27 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea 807-4 x Gulik-2 seed St. Petersburg, Russia

SX09-28 Honeysuckle Lonicera edulis op seed Amur region, Russia

SX09-29 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea op Subsp. kamtchatika seed Kamchatka,

Russia

SX09-30 Honeysuckle Lonicera edulis op seed Primorye, Russia

SX09-31 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea op Subsp.altaica seed Altay, Russia

SX09-32 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea op Subsp. emphyllocalyx seed Kuril Islands,

Russia

SX09-33 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea op Subsp. venulosa seed Primorye, Russia

SX09-34 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea op Subsp. stenantha seed Middle Asia

SX09-35 Honeysuckle Lonicera caerulea Desertnaya cutting St. Petersburg, Russia

SX09-36 Actinidia kolomikta op seed St. Petersburg, Russia

SX09-37 Actinidia polygama op seed St. Petersburg,

45

Russia

SX09-38 Actinidia arguta op seed St. Petersburg, Russia

SX09-39 Apple Malus domestica Kingston black Bareroot tree Uxbridge, ON

SX09-40 Apple Malus domestica Muscadet de Dieppe

Bareroot tree Uxbridge, ON

SX09-41 Apple Malus domestica Chisel Jersey Bareroot tree Uxbridge, ON

SX09-42 chokecherry Prunus virginiana op seed Southern MB SX09-43 pincherry Prunus pensylvanica Jumping Pound scionwood Saskatoon, SK

SX10-01 Raspberry Rubus idaeus Qualicum Rooted plants

Puyallup, WA, USA

SX10-02 Raspberry Rubus idaeus K81-6 Rooted plants Centreville, NS

SX10-10 Pear Pyrus communis? Krazoboyetchka Scionwood Sprucegrove, AB

SX10-16 Mountain Ash Sorbus Edible Mountain Ash Edmonton, AB

SX10-17 Sour cherry Prunus cerasus June Red Montmorency

Potted Plant Unity, SK

SX10-18 Sour cherry Prunus cerasus Bruno seedling Softwood cutting Bruno, SK

SX10-19 Blackraspberry x oxidentalis Rubus Potted

plant Saskatoon, SK

SX10-20 Apple Malus domestica Heaver Budwood Harrow, ON

SX10-21 Red Currant Ribes rubrum Viking Plant Corvallis, OR, USA

SX10-22 Red Currant Ribes rubrum Wilder Plant Corvallis, OR, USA

SX10-23 Red Currant Ribes rubrum Stephen Plant Corvallis, OR, USA

SX10-24 Red Currant Ribes rubrum Rolan Plant Corvallis, OR, USA

SX10-25 Red Currant Ribes rubrum Holland Longbunch Plant Corvallis, OR, USA

SX10-26 Red Currant Ribes rubrum Roodnews Plant Corvallis, OR, USA

SX10-27 Apple Malus domestica Moose Jaw Apple Budwood Moose Jaw, SK SX10-28 Apple Malus domestica C#17 (Battleford x

PF#5) Budwood Unity SK,

SX10-29 Apple Malus domestica C#20 (Unity x C#3) Budwood Unity SK SX10-30 Apple Malus domestica

C#119 (Norland x (Redwell x erickson large fruit selection))

Budwood Unity, SK

SX10-31 Apple Malus domestica

C#120 (Norland x(Breakey x Crimson Beauty large fruited selection))

Budwood Unity, SK


C#145 (Patterson x(Redwell x Erickson large fruited selection))

Budwood Unity, SK

SX10-33 Apple Malus domestica C#156 (Lethona x Budwood Unity, SK

46

Norland)

SX10-34 Apple Malus domestica C#165 (Coutts #67 x Coutts#22) Budwood Unity, SK

SX10-35 Apple Malus domestica C#181 ((Heyer#12 x Red Melba) x Norland)

Budwood Unity, SK

SX10-36 Apple Malus domestica C#188 (Coutts#24 x Coutts#12) Budwood Unity, SK

SX10-37 Apple Malus domestica C#206 (C#10 x (Vineland?65031)) Budwood Unity, SK


C#218 (Patterson x (Redwell x Erickson large fruited selection))

Budwood Unity, SK


C#219 (Patterson x (Redwell x Erickson large fruited selection))

Budwood Unity, SK

SX10-40 Apple Malus domestica C#283 (Coutts#22 x Summer Red) Budwood Unity, SK

SX10-41 Apple Malus domestica C#310 ((Heyer #12 x Red Melba) x Unity)

Budwood Unity, SK

SX10-42 Apple Malus domestica Stoke Red Budwood Harrow, ON

SX10-43 Apple Malus domestica Tremlett’s Bitter MAL0152 Budwood Harrow, ON

SX10-44 Apple Malus domestica Yarlington Mill MAL0153 Budwood Harrow, ON

SX10-45 Apple Malus domestica Brown’s Apple MAL0939 Budwood Harrow, ON

SX10-46 Apple Malus domestica Bulmer Norman MAL0220 Budwood Harrow, ON

SX10-47 Apple Malus domestica Michelin Budwood Harrow, ON

47

Appendix 2: Fruit Articles Prepared by the U of S Fruit Program Some of these articles have appeared in the 2010 Haskap interim report(ADF Grant # 20060140)

Haskap: The Shape of things to come

Mechanical Harvesting trials of 2009 (

(http://www.fruit.usask.ca/articles/HaskapShapeToCome.pdf)

http://www.fruit.usask.ca/articles/mechanicalharvest2009.pdf )

Juliet Cherry Notes (http://www.fruit.usask.ca/articles/Sour%20Cherries/Juliet%20notes.pdf)

Top Ten: Vitinord Grape Conference (http://www.fruit.usask.ca/articles/vitinordtopten2009.pdf )

Grape Breeding for the Prairies (http://www.fruit.usask.ca/articles/Grape2009.pdf )

Tree Fruit Production Presentation-LANTA 2010 (http://www.fruit.usask.ca/Documents/TreeFruitProductionLanta2010Handout.pdf )

http://www.fruit.usask.ca/articles/HaskapShapeToCome.pdf�

http://www.fruit.usask.ca/articles/mechanicalharvest2009.pdf�

http://www.fruit.usask.ca/articles/Sour%20Cherries/Juliet%20notes.pdf�

http://www.fruit.usask.ca/articles/vitinordtopten2009.pdf�

http://www.fruit.usask.ca/articles/Grape2009.pdf�

http://www.fruit.usask.ca/Documents/TreeFruitProductionLanta2010Handout.pdf�

48

Appendix 3: Extension Article “Cider as a Processing Option for Prairie Apple Producers”

Cider as a Processing Option for Prairie Apple Producers

Private and public breeders have been making Apple selections on the prairies since the 1800s. Recent releases from the U of SK such as the “Prairie Sensation” have put the prairies on the map in terms of quality fresh eating dessert apples. Breeders, like Rick Sawatzky, have coped with Saskatchewan’s harsh -40C winters, fireblight, and the discerning palate of consumers to produce high quality dessert apples for Saskatchewan. While vast strides in dessert apple breeding have taken place on the prairies, some believe that there is untapped potential in the selection of apples for hard cider. With cider consumption growing every year, some growers and breeders are beginning to realize that their apples might end up in the pub instead of the grocery store.

Hard Cider

Hard cider is the product resulting from the fermentation of apple juice. The alcohol content of cider varies depending on the pressing methods and apple cultivar, and can reach as high as 8% alcohol by volume (ABV) without adding sugar to boost alcohol content. In the US any fermented apple beverage with an ABV above 7% is considered an apple wine, but most cider makers reserve the designation of apple

wine to a beverage which has had its alcohol content boosted by some artificial means, such as distilling, or adding sugar before fermentation. As a finished product, hard cider can be offered to the consumer in a number of styles. ‘Still’ ciders are uncarbonated and can be dry or sweet. Sparkling ciders have been carbonated, either through a process called refermentation, or artificially with beverage grade CO2, and are also offered in dry and sweet forms. Historically cider would be made by pressing apple juice into large barrels which would simply be covered and left to ferment. These early ciders were fermented by the yeasts which live naturally on the skins of the apples. Without knowledge of microbiology I’m sure these early farmers thought the process was magic!

Hard cider production looks much different today. After the industrial revolution, cider began to be produced on a much larger scale. Today, most cider is derived from bulk apple concentrate. Apple concentrate is a common by-product in dessert apple growing regions where apples are graded out due to abnormalities in their size, shape, physical condition and general appearance. These apples are crushed to make juice

49

which is either packaged up in the form of juice boxes and other tetra paks, or sold in the form of bulk concentrates to food and juice makers around the world. An increasingly cheap source of this apple concentrate is China. Large commercial cider fermenters who use this apple concentrate are often forced to supplement the flavour of their beverages with additives like malic acid.

Artisanal cider Some hard cider is still produced from the apples of purpose grown cider trees. These drinks are referred to as artisanal ciders, and are considered to be of much better quality than the commercially produced beverages. Cider apples have unique flavour characteristics that most would consider unsuitable in a dessert apple. Cidermasters classify cider apples into 3 general taste categories: Bittersweet, Bitter-sharp (or just Sharp), and Sweet. By blending juices of these 3 types of apples, the desired cider flavour is achieved. While Sharp and Sweet apples are abundant in Saskatchewan, the Bittersweet and Bitter-sharp apples required for a well-balanced hard cider are not as common. Bittersweet and Bitter-sharp cider apples are rich in tannins, the same group of molecules which give red wines their balanced taste and mouthfeel. The tannin content in cider apples can be as high as 0.3%(w/v) in the case of the cider apple Vilberie, and as low as 0.05%(w/v) in dessert apples such as McIntosh1

1 G.A. Moulton, J. King, and D. Zimmerman. (2005) Evaluation of Apple Cultivars for Hard Cider

. Cider

apples can have higher sugar content as well, which gives the finished product a higher alcohol content.

Figure 16: Bottle label from Merridale Artisanal Cidery in BC

In many ways artisanal cider making practices are reminiscent of wine making. As with wine making, these practices express themselves regionally. France, Spain, Denmark and UK each have their own unique cider styles and preferences. In UK, top-fermenting Ale yeasts are used to add more complex polyphenols to the beverage. In France, there are laws which ensure that the labelling of a cider indicates at which stage in a pressing the juice was drawn from. In Spain, malolactic fermentation is sometimes employed, a process usually reserved for wines such as Chardonnay.

Cider Apple Origins

In Europe, apple selection and cider production paralleled each other for centuries, cider being the easiest way to

Production. Washington State University. http://maritimefruit.wsu.edu/Cider05.html

http://maritimefruit.wsu.edu/Cider05.html�

50

preserve the goodness of an apple. Every fall, growers across Europe would crush their apples and press the juice, which they would store in barrels and drink through the winter. In spring, apple growers wanting more delicious cider for the long winter months, would propagate the apples which gave them the best tasting ciders the previous winter. The apples which were propagated most often were passed on to the next generation who, once more, propagated the best of these apples. Eventually, apple growers in Europe ended up with aromatic, sharp, sweet and bitter fruit perfect for blending into a fermented product.

Cider apples on the Prairies

Saskatchewan’s geophysical situation is well suited to cider apple production. In the past Cider apple cultivation has been restricted to warmer areas where land can be prohibitively expensive. This limits growers to intensive plantings on the scale of acres or tens of acres. Saskatchewan has the advantage of access to larger areas of fertile land, a typical unit of land measurement being a quarter section, or 160 acres. On this scale mechanically harvesting becomes highly economical, and while dessert apples must be carefully taken off by hand in order to preserve their appearance, cider apples can be mechanically harvested without negatively impacting the finished product

Despite the advantages for cider apple growers over dessert apple growers, the prairie provinces boast very few viable cider apple cultivars. This is probably because North America, and prairie regions in particular, are relative newcomers to apple cultivation. Currently, artisanal cideries in

Canada are limited to a handful of regions where winter conditions are mild enough for imported European cider trees to survive. The imported cider apple varieties would not survive the harsh winters of the Canadian Prairies. The hardiest of the cider varieties will tolerate zone 4, and would not likely survive zone 3. Here lies a unique opportunity in hardy fruit breeding. Breeding and selecting cold hardy cider cultivars suitable for blending with existing dessert varieties could give Saskatchewan apple producers new options in terms of value added processing.

Breeding and selection at the University of Saskatchewan

The University of Saskatchewan has been involved in the breeding of apple cultivars in some capacity for over 60 years. In 1960 C.F. Patterson released 20 apple cultivars which are still in existence at the University’s Gene bank. Last year, Rick Sawatzky introduced 3 new dessert apples. These apples were chosen for qualities which made them marketable as well as good apples for fresh eating.

Figure 17: U of S 2009 release 'Autumn Delight'

51

Both Patterson and Sawatzky’s introductions were good steps for improving hardy dessert apple genetics. However, cider apples and dessert apples present us with a conflicting set of selection criteria. Dessert apples are selected based on flavour criteria like aroma, acidity and sweetness, as well as appearance criteria like colour, wash, russeting, and shape. A cider apple, which is destroyed during processing and pressing, is not constricted by the same appearance criteria. In fact, some cider apples can be quite ugly (in dessert apple terms). An example of a potential breeding parent for a successful cider apple is the Kerr apple crab. The Kerr is a very hardy tree producing a sweet and aromatic crab. Its tannin content is higher than most dessert apples, but still not enough to compare with the European cider apples. In addition to several Kerr trees, the Univesity of Saskatchewan Fruit

Figure 18: Kermerrian cider apple has a protruding calyx end and a dullish color. Fine for cider, but would never

sell in the supermarket.

Program has several apple seedling evaluation plots coming in to bearing, as well as dozens of historic prairie apple cultivars. These apples have been evaluated for dessert quality, but can be passed by if appearance or flavours are considered unappealing for fresh eating. We have begun to perform fresh evaluations of our existing germplasm collections and seedling plots with cider specific selection criteria in mind.

The U of S Fruit Program has also begun collecting cider apple germplasm for crosses with prairie hardy apples. Below is a list of apples that have been used in breeding by the fruit program this year:

• Tremletts Bitter • Yarlington Mill • Brown’s apple • Stoke Red • Michelin • Muscadet de Dieppe

52

Appendix 4: Extension Article “Popular Fruit Varieties, 2010”

Popular Fruit Varieties, 2010

The following list was compiled by Bob Bors (U of S), Rick Sawatzky (U of S) and Clarence Peters (SAFRR). These varieties are widely grown in Saskatchewan, mostly in backyards and gardens. This list is not intended for commercial growers. Commercial growers should investigate these and other varieties more thoroughly and make test plantings of several varieties to determine suitability for your operation. Keep in mind that Saskatchewan spans 3 hardiness zones and has multiple soil types. Some exceptional varieties have been underlined. For more info visit: www.fruit.usask.ca Ripening season estimates are based on Saskatoon conditions but can vary from year to year. Haskap/Blue Honeysuckle: June & July Borealis or Tundra

• They need a pollinator but not each other. Berry Blue works and so do most cultivars from Russia. U of SK will be releasing a pollinator in 2010. In a cool year these may be good in August

Strawberry Early July June Bearers

• Early: Annapolis • Mid: Cavendish,• Late: Bounty

Kent

Dayneutrals • Tristar, Seascape (One season only?), Fern

Everbearers • Ogallalla, Fort Laramie (Home gardeners only)

Saskatoon Mid to late July Early Mid Season

• Northline, Smoky Mid Season

• Honeywood, ParkhillMid Late Season

(Most disease resistant)

• Thiessen, Martin, Nelson


53

Raspberry Summerbearers: late July - early Aug Fallbearers: Sept - frost Early

• Boyne(Industry standard in Canada) Midseason

• Festival • Steadfast (Doesn’t sucker much)

Late • Red Mammoth

Purple (U of S), K81-6 (zone 3 only)

• Royalty (zone 3) Black

• (None fully hardy) Yellow

• Honeyqueen (For home gardens only) Primocanes(Fall Bearers)

• Autumn Bliss (Too late in season, except Maple Creek) Dwarf Sour Cherry August, but Carmine Jewel may be late July

• Carmine Jewel

(U of S): Earliest to ripen, black fruit

Romance series (U of S): Most are dark fruit and very tasty • Valentine formerly 7-19-27.6 (Red fruit) • Crimson Passion formerly 7-21-16.3 • Juliet• Romeo formerly 7-7-5.8

formerly 7-21-31.0

• Cupid formerly 7-32-19.1 (Late season)

Currants & Gooseberry Aug European Black Currants

• ‘Ben’ seriesBuffalo Currant

(good flavour & mildew resistant)

• Black Giant, Black Albol Red Currants

• Red Lake, Honey Red Gooseberry

• Pixwell, Hinnonmaeki Red, Welcome, Jahn’s Prairie Choke Cherry mid to late Aug

• Garrington

54

• Pickup’s Pride • Shubert

(Large fruit, good flavour for a cc)

Plums mid Aug P. nigra x salicina hybrids: Need wild plum pollinizers

• Patterson Pride • Prairie

(top flavour)

• Pembina • Perfection/Superb

P. salicina types: Need another compatible P. salicina pollinizer

• Brookgold • Green Elf

(Super productive, dependable)

• Ivanovka • Ptitsin #3 • Ptitsin #5 • Fofonoff (Homesteader) • Brook Red

Cherry Plums mid Aug Red-Fleshed

• Dura, Manor, Sapa, New Oka, Kappa and Zeta Green-Fleshed

• Opata, Beta

Apple late Aug to Oct Early

• Adanac, Norland (Very hardy) Midseason

• Fall Red, September Ruby, Norkent

Late Season

(Durable), Goodland (Not as hardy but sweet), Battleford, Carlos Queen, Westland

• Minnesota #447, Haralson (Also called HaralRed), Crabapples

• Early: Rescue, • Mid: Dolgo, • After frost: Kerr

U of S varieties (Intense flavour, add to cider)

• Prairie Sun (Early, good for drying) • Prairie Sensation (Firm flesh, very tasty)

55

• Autumn Delight•

(Firm flesh, very tasty) Misty Rose

(Firm flesh, very tasty)

Grapes early Sept • Valiant, Beta

Pears Sept

• John (Quite good and good size if heavily pruned and thinned) • Thomas (Best quality, low availability) • Ure (only zone 3)

Seabuckthorn Sept New from PFRA

• Harvest Moon (needs a male tree to set fruit) Most of the above crops can be of good quality. Prairie plums have a sweet, very nice taste, but are rather small and can have tough skins. And while prairie plums are good eaten fresh, hardy grapes, pears and cherry plums are usually processed. We are breeding these crops at the U of S but it may be several years before we have improved, high quality cultivars. For more info visit: www.fruit.usask.ca


56

Appendix 5: Extension Document “University of Saskatchewan Apple Introducations, 1997-2010”

University of Saskatchewan Apple Introductions

1997-2010

R.J. Sawatzky

NAME PARENTAGE YEAR INTRODUCED BRIEF DESCRIPTION

SK Prairie Sun Brookland X Goodland

Test no. 70-20-01

1997 A COPF introduction, a multi-purpose apple cultivar, ripens September 1, slightly oblate yellowish cream with a pink blush, flesh is fine textured, crisp, juicy and moderately sweet and resistant to oxidation browning, good for fresh eating and makes excellent processed products, will size-up to 3" with

professional care. Not recommended to gardeners. The storage life is comparable to Norland, short. The tree is semi-spur, semi-

dwarf, very hardy and easily grown.

Prairie Sensation M359 X Brookland

Test no. 18-10-32

2006 A COPF introduction, fruit is large (average of 10 fruit is 7.63 cms, 3”) and roundish to slightly oblate in shape. Colour is a 50% cover of red in wash and stripes over two

shades of light green. Texture is fine, firm, tender (breaking), crisp and juicy, ripe Sept

15. Flavour is a mild sub-acid with an intense aromatic component. The tree is

slightly leggy with an open crown but sets up a moderate number of short spurs.

Recommended to both gardeners and commercial growers.

Misty Rose Brookland X

mixed pollen of Minn 1728 and

Pioneer #10 Test no. 4-11-48

2008 Ripe Aug 31, fruit is medium sized, round to slightly barrel shaped, 70% red in stripes,

splash and wash over a light yellowish green ground colour. The flavor is very good with a strong pleasant aromatic component. The

57

texture is very fine, crisp and juicy and remains juicy even after the apple begins to

soften. Remarkably good keeping for an early apple. Needs professional care to

produce quality fruit and recommended to commercial growers only.

Autumn Delight

Haralson X

Parkland Test no. 4-10-43

2008

Ripe Sept 20 remains in excellent condition on the tree until Oct 1. A small apple unless it is pruned and fruit thinned professionally. Shape conic round. 90% wine red in wash

splash and stripe over light greenish yellow ground. The flavor is rich and sweet with

very good acid balance. Texture is medium firm and very crisp and juicy. Very good

shelf life and storability. Needs professional care to produce quality fruit and

recommended to commercial growers only.

Festive Treat

Brookland X MacIntosh

Test no. 18-7-10

2010

Ripe September 24 but starts falling too early

if not fruit thinned. Very fine crisp juicy texture. Flavor is rich and sweet with a very

good acid balance. Shape is round and asymmetrical. Colour 90% splashed and

striped red (little solid red) over light greenish yellow ground. Storage is good and remains very juicy after beginning to soften

due to the very fine texture. Needs professional care to produce quality fruit and recommended to commercial growers only.

58

Appendix 6: Extension Document “Apple Cultivars Named by PAPI” APPLE CULTIVARS NAMED BY PAPI

2010

The following is a list of apple cultivars named by Prairie Apple Producers Incorporated (PAPI). They were grown in large numbers as test trees for the Fruit Program and were named by PAPI

for the purpose of selling the fruit. At this time the University of Saskatchewan does not recommend them for propagation.

Test No.

Name Patentage Brief Description

4-6-48 Patience Westland X Haralson

Ripe 13 Sept. Very attractive 90 to 100% stripe and wash red over light greenish yellow, very smooth round conic

shape, very rich sub acid flavor high in astringency, texture med firm very crisp and juicy with very good

storage life.

4-10-36 Anna Gold Brookland X Honeygold

Ripe 17 Sept. A small yellow apple much like Golden Delicious

5-2-52 Granny Annie Westland X

Haralson Ripe 30 Sept. Like Granny Smith but with 80% red over

colour.

5-4-14 Petrofka Mack M359 X Breakey

Ripe 8 Sept. Much like MacIntosh

5-6-33 Celeste Westland X Lobo

Ripe 30 Aug. A good quality large red apple.

18-8-9 Red Mike Brookland X MacIntosh

Ripe 9 Sept. Texture, colour and shape much like MacIntosh only smaller. Subacid flavor with a very nice

aromatic component.

18-17-11

Prairie Rose Lobo X Brookland

Ripe 16 Sept but will hang on the tree in good condition until Sept 30, a good keeper. A very smooth attractive solid red apple with firm flesh. Round slightly oblate.

Sour with tasty aromatics.

18-22-23

Sweet Saffron Pioneer #60 X Westland

Ripe 8 Sept but hangs on the tree in good condition for at least two weeks. Sour with good aromatic flavor, good texture. Mostly light greenish yellow with 10% pink

blush and splash, prominent lenticels.

59

Appendix 7: Extension Article “Prairie Fruit Summary, 2010”

Prairie Fruit Summary, 2010 Some key considerations for the homeowner

by Bob Bors

The following list highlights some key positive (+), negative (-) and variable ( ± ) attributes for growing fruit crops on the Canadian Prairies for home gardeners. Keep in mind that these are generalities and that new varieties and growing methods might change some negative attributes. Commercial growers would have other considerations such as suitability of mechanized harvesting and cost of production which this list does not take into account. For more info visit: www.fruit.usask.ca Haskap/Blue Honeysuckle:

- All varieties are very cold hardy + 1st fruit to ripen + Flowers are frost resistant to -7o C + Minimal pruning needed, no

suckers + Few pests + Many uses for fruit + Has tolerance for wet conditions + One of the highest antioxidant

berries..beats blueberries! ± Can taste great

(raspberry/blueberry) or horrible (tonic water) depending on the variety

± Some varieties get mildew on leaves

- May need bird netting - Needs 2 unrelated varieties for cross pollination

Saskatoon

+ All varieties are very cold hardy + One of the few fruits for mid summer

+ Plants need minimal training, and periodic thinning.

+ Firm berry good for pies, pastry and other uses.

± Some varieties compact and spreading but others get too talk and dense

+ High in antioxidants

- Many insect pests and diseases - Tends to bloom early and can get frost damage every few years

- Somewhat aggressive suckering - May need bird netting Raspberry

+ Late bloomer so avoids frost damage

+ Good tasting varieties available

± Some varieties cold hardy - Annual pruning required which


60

thorns make difficult - Several diseases and pest - Aggressive suckering for most

varieties Dwarf Sour Cherry

+ Varieties available with high quality fruit, much higher sugar and flavour than traditional sour cherries

+ Dwarf and on their own roots, this is not the case for sour cherries developed elsewhere in the world

+ Few pests and diseases + High yielding + Plants need minimal training, and

periodic thinning. + Relatively late bloomer, less chance

of frost damage + Fruits hold onto bushes and won’t

drop easily when ripe. Fruit can dry on the trees and still taste good.

+ Usually has a 3 week long harvest window when it can be picked and taste great.

± Low or moderate suckering for most varieties

± Some varieties more hardy than others

Black Currants + All varieties are very cold hardy + High in antioxidants + Plants need minimal training, and

periodic thinning. + Well behaved plants don’t sucker

much, moderate height ± Some varieties are mildew resistant - Dried flower stays stuck to fruit and

stem stays on fruit when picked ± Strong unique flavour that some

like - Can get caterpillars that will

defoliate plants Choke Cherry

+ All varieties are very cold hardy + Red leafed varieties are ornamental + Fruit can be black, red, orange or

yellow - Black knot disease is damaging and

ugly - Poor flavour, needs processing but

some like it - Highly aggressive suckering, need

regular pruning and training

- Leaves and pits can be toxic - Some tendency to bloom too early and get frost damage on flowers

Plum

+ Many varieties tasty + Slightly suckering unless Sandcherry is the rootstock

+ Not many pests ± Variable hardiness depending on variety and year

± Can be on own roots or grafted onto rootstocks

- Fruit smaller than what is seen in grocery stores

- Need two compatible varieties, - Tends to bloom early so can get

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some types need a wild plum for pollination

frost damage some years

- Fruits drop quickly when ripe Cherry Plum

+ Can be beautiful in flower and in fruit if taken care of

+ Low lying shrub, often with nice fall colour and glossy leaves

- Fresh fruit usually astringent, needs to be processed. At peak ripeness may be ok flavour.

± Varieties that are dark red inside make nicer looking jam. Those that are green inside make ugly jam.

- Name misleading, tastes nothing like a cherry

- Often dies back to snowline or ground in cold years, especially older branches

Apple

+ Can have large fruit and easy picking

+ Much fewer pests growing on Prairie than other regions

± Varieties are highly variable for hardiness and fruit quality

± Fruit of some newer varieties can be stored a few months, others only a few weeks

+ Light suckering at base of tree + Usually doesn’t get frost damage on flowers

- Fruit needs to be thinned to promote annual production and good size fruit

- All trees are grafted

- Trunk susceptible to mice and sunscald damage in winter especially when young

- Trees require regular training and pruning

Grape

+ A few varieties (2?) and wild grapes can survive here

+ A vine that has many potential uses in the landscape on trellises and to cover up fences

- Prairie varieties have small fruits with many seeds and all are black coloured

+ Wild grapes and their hybrids have high nutritional value (resveritrol)

- Often get dieback - Techniques exist to grow less hardy varieties here but these methods have not been tried much nor proven

- Limited use in jam and juice - Vines are very aggressive requiring extensive pruning each year

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Strawberry

+ Good tasting varieties available ± Some pest problems + Only need 1 variety for fruit set - Needs straw covering for winter - Needs to be renovated frequently - Weeds often a big problem

Pear

± The tallest of all fruit trees for the prairie. Good if you want a big tree.

- Fruit quality is very poor compared to pears in grocery stores; often highly astringent

± Only prairie varieties are hardy - Needs 2 varieties for cross pollination

- Most varieties have small fruit that drop quickly when ripe, making a mess

Seabuckthorn

+ All varieties are highly cold hardy + The bush makes its own nitrogen, and does alright on marginal land

+ Drought tolerant + Impressively decorative gray thin leaves

+ Nutritious fruit rich in oil soluble vitamins

± Good for juice, tea, and other products but too sour for fresh eating. Juice is like orange juice if sweetened

± Seeds that are like small grape seeds make it undesirable for whole fruit uses like pies or pastries. Need to press the juice to use the fruit. Oils in seeds have uses in cosmetics.

± Horrible long thorns that can go through gloves. Some new varieties have less thorns. Fruit does not come off easy so dodging thorns becomes and issue at harvest time.

- Perhaps the most aggressive suckering fruit crop. Could keep in bounds with annual pruning and grass. Has become invasive in some regions of the world.

- Plants are either female or male so need both to get fruit set.

- Doesn’t like wet conditions

A companion article “Popular Fruit Varieties” gives information of the better varieties for each fruit crop. For more info visit: www.fruit.usask.ca
