Material and Methods described in this chapter have been used for some of the experiments.
Some techniques are here widely described in a step by step way, whereas in each following chapter a brief resume will be reported.
2.1 P
LANTM
ATERIAL2.1.1 F
RUITD
EVELOPMENTS
TUDYFor the study of Actindia deliciosa (A. Chev.) C.F. Liang et A.R. Ferguson var. deliciosa fruit development, a total of 24 vines were selected in 2003 and 2004 from three factorial seedling populations. These were planted in 2 contiguous orchard blocks at Te Puke Research Centre (Bay of Plenty, NZ; 37o 49’ S - 176o 19’ E) in 1999 for breeding purposes.
Vine selection was accurate. A total of 818 female seedling were screened and ranked according records of fruit dry matter content at harvest in previous years. An equal number of extreme high and low fruit dry matter plants characterized by a large or small final fruit size were selected. Vines were allocated in 4 classes with contrasting rates of fruit fresh weight and dry weight accumulation (Fig. 2-1).
Fruit Size
Large Small
High CLASS
High-Large
CLASS High-Small Dry matter
Low CLASS
Low-Large
CLASS Low-Small Fig. 2-1: Fruit classes according to vines were grouped in.
All vines were growing on a T-bar trellis at 0.8 m spacing on the row and 5 m spacing between rows. The first selection step was carried out in 2003 when18 vines were selected.
The following year only 4 seedlings from the original bunch were kept and 6 more extreme vines were added, for a total of 10. In 2006 only 9 of the 10 selected seedlings were assessed, due to the eradication of all the vine in one of the two blocks. In 2005 scions from the 10 selected vine were grafted on 4 ‘Bruno’ rootstocks each genotype, following a complete randomized block design (Mead et al., 1993) obtained using SAS® software.
Grafted vines were growing in the same orchard block at Te Puke Research Centre spanning 4 rows on a T-bar trellis at 2 m spacing on the row and 5 m spacing between rows. Two polliniser varieties, King (early flowering) and M56 (mid-late flowering) were grafted both on each stump in a 1:5 male to female ratio each.
Blocks were managed according normal commercial practises, pruned using one year old cane replacement and a low intensity summer pruning. A basic ferlizer level was used.
In Appendix III Plant Pedigree Summaries of all the three breeding populations are reported.
All the family used are genetically related to each other. ID codes used to name each individual ware created at HortResearch.
2.1.1.1 BREEDING POPULATIONS
Here are reported some informations on each breeding family (BF) object of the study.
2.1.1.1.1 Breeding Family C15
The breeding family C15 was obtained crossing the female parent 35-02-11f.92 and the male parent C-2-115.86. 310 vines, out of the 543 seedlings planted, were females.
2.1.1.1.2 Breeding Families A16 and B16
The breeding family A16 was obtained crossing the female parent 40-12-15d.92 (-2 generation male parent is C15’s male parent) and the male parent 32-06-15a.91. 295 vines, out of the 300 seedlings planted, were females (of which 113 hermaphrodite).
2.1.1.1.3 Breeding Families A01...A03, A05...A07, A09...A14
The breeding families A01...A03, A05...A07, A09...A14 were obtained from an F2 Male Progeny Test crossing the female parent 40-12-15d.92 (-2 generation male parent is C15’s male parent) and 12 of its male siblings (male parent) 32-06-15a.91 as shown in Tab. 2-1.
The female parent was the same used for A16 crossing. 213 vines, out of the 451 seedlings planted, were females. Dots between family codes mean ‘from-to’.
Tab. 2-1: Male Parents of F2 Male Progeny Test.
Family Male Parent Family Male Parent
A01 40-08-14e.92 A09 47-01-07a.92
A02 40-09-14f.92 A10 47-01-07b.92
A03 40-12-15c.92 A11 47-03-07a.92
A05 40-13-15d.92 A12 47-03-07b.92
A06 46-02-04d.92 A14 47-04-09-f.92
A07 46-03-04c.92 A15 47-06-09f.92
2.1.1.2 SELECTED SEEDLINGS
In Tab. 2-2 seedling selected in 2003 and 2004 are reported. All seedlings were spanning the three breeding populations. 7 vines were from BF C15, 5 vines were from BF A16 and 11 vines were from the F2 Male Progeny Test. According to the criteria described in §2.2 and the classes showed in Fig. 2-1, 6 High-Large, 6 High-Small, 8 Low-Large and 4 Low-Small seedlings were selected.
Tab. 2-2: List of all vines selected and objects of the present study. Here are reported the progressive plant number (some gaps are due to a poor fruit load of the vine), the HR identification, the year of selection, the family of origin, Female and Male Parents, the DM and size classes of each seedling.
# HR-ID Year Family Female Parent Male Parent DM Size
1 40-12-08f 2003 A14 40-12-15d-92 47-06-09f.92 Low Large
3 40-11-09b 2003 A11 40-12-15d-92 47-03-07a.92 High Large
4 40-11-09f 2003 A12 40-12-15d-92 47-03-07b.92 High Small
5 40-10-05b 2003 C15 35-02-11f.92 C-2-115.86 High Large
8 40-04-18b 2003 A16 40-12-15d.92 32-06-15a.91 High Small
11 40-04-12b 2003 A06 40-12-15d-92 46-02-04d.92 Low Small
12 40-04-04c 2003 C15 35-02-11f.92 C-2-115.86 Low Large
13 46-01-11d 2003 A01 40-12-15d-92 40-08-14e.92 High Large
14 46-01-14a 2003 A01 40-12-15d-92 40-08-14e.92 High Small
15 46-03-14f 2003 A01 40-12-15d-92 40-08-14e.92 Low Large
17 40-06-00b 2003 C15 35-02-11f.92 C-2-115.86 Low Small
18 40-11-01d 2003 C15 35-02-11f.92 C-2-115.86 High Large
19 40-05-18a 2003 A16 40-12-15d.92 32-06-15a.91 Low Large
20 40-07-14d 2003 A16 40-12-15d.92 32-06-15a.91 Low Large
21 40-03-17e 2003 B16 40-10-14e.92 32-06-15a.91 High Large
22 40-03-08c 2003 A07 40-12-15d-92 46-03-04c.92 Low Large
23 40-03-06a 2003 C15 35-02-11f.92 C-2-115.86 Low Small
24 46-06-04b 2003 A01 40-12-15d-92 40-08-14e.92 High Small
25 40-06-14a 2004 A16 40-12-15d.92 32-06-15a.91 Low Large
26 40-09-15g 2004 A16 40-12-15d.92 32-06-15a.91 Low Large
27 46-04-15g 2004 A01 40-12-15d-92 40-08-14e.92 Low Small
28 40-13-03b 2004 C15 35-02-11f.92 C-2-115.86 High Large
29 40-08-03e 2004 C15 35-02-11f.92 C-2-115.86 High Small
30 40-11-09e 2004 A12 40-12-15d-92 47-03-07b.92 High Small
2.1.2 G
ROWTHR
EGULATORA
PPLICATIONThe growth regulator experiment was carried out on green ‘Hayward’ kiwifruit [Actinidia deliciosa (A. Chev.) C.F. Liang et A.R. Ferguson var. deliciosa] in a 1991 block orchard at Te Puke Research Centre (Bay of Plenty, NZ; 37o 49’ S - 176o 19’ E). Vines were managed for commercial production (except for pruining, thinning and girdling practices) on a pergola-trained system at 6 m spacing on the row and 5 m spacing between rows. All vines were growing on open-pollinated ‘Kaimai’ seedling rootstocks.
2.2 S
ELECTIONC
RITERIA FORS
IZE ANDD
RYM
ATTERSize and dry matter are two continuous variable, so there is not a clear separation between large and small size, and high and low dry matter, as it can be easily found for qualitative characters such as colour.
It was the positioned a threshold for both variable, considering for example that one of the objective for dry matter was select really extreme genotypes. Dry matter threshold was between 17.5 and 18% of dry matter content at 154 DAA, referred to first years of population observations. Size was less important then dry matter for the experiment, and the goal of this selection was to have an equal distribution of fruit size between dry matter classes. A virtual threshold was then decided also for size, and it was 90 g of average fruit final fresh weight.