Pollen and pollination experiments. I. the contribution of stray pollen to the seed set of depetalled,hand-pollinated flowers of apple

Summary Using the finger nails to remove most of the petals is a fast method of preparing apple flowers for hand pollination in the balloon stage. Such flowers still appeared quite attractive to insects; left to open pollination, the seed set per flower averaged two thirds of that of similarly treated, but hand-pollinated flowers. With the aid of marker pollen of scab or mildew resistant donors and the subsequent screening of the seedling progenies for resistance, it was shown that the stray pollen was responsible on average for one of every three seeds formed by unbagged depetalled and hand-pollinated flowers.     

The interaction between compatible and self-incompatible pollen of apple and pear as influcenced by their ratio in the pollen cloud

Summary The production of self-seed was investigated in apple and pear with the aid of viable and compatible mentor/ pioneer pollen in relation to the proportion of self-imcompatible pollen present in the pollen cloud.Treatments consisted of mixtures of compatible and self-incompatible pollen at ratios of 1:1, 1:2 and 1:9 applied once or twice or followed by self-pollination. Selfing only, whether once or twice, produced virtually no fruits or seeds, while mixed pollinations did. Generally, fruit set tended to decrease and the self-seed to increase with increasing amounts of self pollen in the pollinations.The pioncer-pollen method (compatible in advance of self pollen) appeared more effective than the mentor pollen method (compatible and self pollen mixed). The use of viable instead of dead mentor/pioneer pollen causes competition for the ovules with the self pollen, but has the advantage that, in addition to some self-seed, other seeds are formed which, e.g. in apple, are necessary to keep the fruits on the tree until harvest.Fruit set was moderately reduced at ratios of compatible pollen to self pollen not exceeding 1:9 with pear and 1:5 with apple which constitute maximal ratios in practice as regards pollinator trees: trees of the main cultivar. In fruit orchards and probably in nature with other species, the interaction between compatible and self pollen may result in more self-seed, and so suggests that inbreeding played a greater part in the evolution of self-incompatible species, than the meager results of articial self-pollination imply.     

The performance of double or mixed pollinations with compatible and self-incompatible or incongruous pollen of pear and apple

Summary Six pear and five apple trials were carried out to ascertain the outcome of combinations of compatible pollen (C) with self (S) or incongruous pollen (I) as to the pollination index (PI=seeds/pollinated flower). The PI of the mixture C+I (1:5) was consistently depressed as compared to that of the control C. The results of the double pollinations S/C and I/C were affected by the temperature at pollination; their PI's at <15°C were twice as high as those at >15°C, being well above and below the PI of C in the former and latter case respectively. The opposite was true for the C/S combination, the PI of which increased with the pollination temperature; the PI of C/I did not differ much from the PI of C, irrespective of temperature. The conclusion was reached that the interaction previously and presently found between compatible and self-incompatible pollen also exists to a fair extent between compatible and incongruous pollen. However, in pear neither the mentor nor the pioneer pollen technique proved to aid its hybridization with apple, the formation of self seed was not observed either. In apple the production of apple × pear hybrids was likewise doubtful, but the double pollinations S/C and C/S formed 4–10% self seed.     

基因型对黄瓜辐射花粉诱导单倍体的影响

以29个黄瓜不同基因型为材料,研究了基因型对辐射花粉诱导单倍体的影响;结果表明：29个不同基因型的单倍体诱导率变异幅度为0.18~2.20,平均为0.76,11个基因型单倍体诱导率在0.5~1之间,占基因型总量的37.93%,10个基因型单倍体诱导率在0.18~0.5之间,占基因型总量的34.48%;说明基因型对辐射花粉诱导单倍体的影响存在较大差异。     

Pollen and pollination experiments. III. The viability of apple and pear pollen as affected by irradiation and storage

Summary Apple and pear pollen was irradiated with doses of 0, 50, 100, 250 and 500 krad (gamma rays) and stored at 4°C and 0–10% r.h. From the in-vitro germination percentages an average LD 50 dose of about 220 krad was estimated. For both irradiated and untreated pollen a close and corresponding lineair relationship existed between germination percentage and pollen tube growth.Irradiated pollen was much more sensitive to dry storage conditions than untreated pollen, resulting in less germination and more bursting. Apparently, irradiation caused the pollen cell membrane to lose its flexibility faster than normal. Rehydration of dry-stored, irradiated pollen in water-saturated air restored germination percentages up to their initial levels. The importance of this procedure in germination trials is stressed.     

Embryo development and fruit-set in pear induced by untreated and irradiated pollen

Summary Flowers of the pear cultivars Conference, Doyenné du Comice and Gieser Wildeman were pollinated with untreated and 50-krad-irradiated pollen. Fruitlets were sectioned at regular intervals up to 6 weeks after pollination. Tubes of the irradiated pollen grew slower, but within two weeks nearly as many embryos were initiated as in the case of untreated pollen. Thereafter, the proportion of degenerated embryos increased, although the endosperm sometimes persisted. Six weeks after pollination only about 21% of the seeds induced by the irradiated pollen still contained normal embryos. At or before that time in-vitro culture of the immature seeds will be necessary because few embryos survive until harvest. The irradiated pollen stimulated a rather large parthenocarpic fruit-set, presumably associated with endosperm rather than embryo development during the first 4–6 weeks after pollination. The possibilities of haploid production are discussed.     

Dwarfing and lethal genes in apple progenies

Summary Three dwarf types are described, early dwarf, determined by two recessive genes d ₁ and d ₃, in the double homozygous state, and an additional recessive gene d ₄ and crinkle dwarf and sturdy dwarf each also determined by a recessive gene.The gene l, for pale green lethal was found to be closely linked to the gene V _f , for scab resistance.There was evidence of a regrowth promoting gene, G, in some seedlings homozygous for d ₁ and d ₃.     

Restrictions of the efficiency of haploid plant production in apple cultivar Idared,through parthenogenesisin situ

Summary For haploid plant production in Idared apple, parthenogenesisin situ was induced by irradiated pollen. The most important restrictions were seed set, embryo germination and green plant recovery from germinated embryos. The efficiency of green plant production was strongly influenced by irradiation dose, picking time and quality of the irradiated pollen. 250 Gy pollen was more efficient for green plant production than 500 Gy pollen. Using 250 Gy pollen with reduced germination capacity resulted in a five-fold lower green plant yield. Delaying picking of the fruits (140 instead of 70 days after pollination) had a significant positive effect. Up to 20 plants per 1000 pollinated flowers, showing no expression of a marker gene present in the pollen parent, were obtained in some treatments. Induction efficiency was high when seed weight was high. This offers the possibility of selecting seeds with the best chances for haploid plant production. Heavy seeds generally contained visual normal developed embryos, which germinated better than those from lighter seeds and gave normal plant development. Delayed picking increased the proportion of large seeds, suggesting that pollination with irradiated pollen retards embryo development. From treatments with irradiated pollen of poor quality more small seeds were harvested.     

Pollen and pollination experiments. II. The influence of the first pollination on the effectiveness of the second one in apple

Summary Pollinating apple cultivars twice with compatible pollen at an interval of one or two days produced about twice as many seeds per pollinated flower as a single pollination. With the aid of scab- or mildew resistant marker pollen, it could be shown that the second pollen formed on average twice as many seeds as the first. The first pollen appears to pave the way-partly at its own cost-for the second and was therefore called pioneer pollen.     

Optimal sampling strategies for evaluating fruit softening after harvest in apple breeding

Environmental variance components associated with year, tree, and harvest date were estimated for fruit softening after harvest in apple (Malus × domestica Borkh.) to determine their relative importance and design optimum sampling strategies to discriminate genotypes in apple breeding. Fruit were stored after harvest under 20± 2 ^∘C and 80± 5%RH. Softening was evaluated by adapting the change in firmness during storage to a linear regression and defining the regression coefficient as the softening rate. Environmental variances associated with genotype × year interaction, among trees, year × tree interaction, and among harvest dates were all very small, namely, 2.7, 0.1, 5.2, and 5.7%, respectively, to the total variance obtained from the analysis of variance for the softening rate. The variance associated with genotype, at 57.3%, was very large. On the basis of the number of fruit necessary for firmness measurements, two times harvest is an efficient strategy to determine a genotype mean for the softening.     

Genetics and histology of powdery mildew resistance in apple

Summary Eight scab-resistant cultivars and selections along with eight commercial apple cultivars were evaluated for powdery mildew resistance in greenhouse and nursery tests. Dayton, Liberty, Delicious and Tolman Sweet were rated moderately resistant to infection in both greenhouse and nursery tests. Segregation of seedlings among 14 progenies for mildew reaction indicated that mildew resistance is polygenically controlled in this material with additive gene effects. Recovery of mildew resistant seedlings from crosses involving a scab-resistant parent(s) suggested that this material can be useful in developing scab- and mildew-resistant apple cultivars. Histological investigations were conducted to describe mildew symptoms of infected leaves.     

Inheritance and selection of some fruit characters of apple. I. Inheritance of low and high acidity

Summary Fruit acidity as such appears to be gouverned by a single major gene, low acidity being a recessive character. The additional genetic variation is explainable by the additive gene action model. This mode of inheritance causes the pH distribution of seedlings in progenies to shift with a higher mid-parent pH towards more low-acid cum sweet (pH 3.8) and fewer high-acid cum sour (pH 2.9) seedlings or vice versa with a lower midparent pH. As a result, in crosses between heterozygotes (Mama) the total proportion of undesirable seedlings -low plus high-acid ones-, remains similar, irrespective of the mid-parent pH. This proportion constituted about one third of the seedlings. A same proportion, but of mainly sour plants, was found in crosses between relatively acid homozygotes (Mama) or between these and similar heterozygotes. It was less than one quarter if the heterozygous partner was medium-acid and a few percentages only when both the homozygous and heterozygous partner were medium-acid. Choosing parents in the absence of information, chances are that the very large majority of the medium-acid types are heterozygotes, that among the relatively acid ones one in two is homozygous and that the odds to find homozygotes among the sour types are probably best. Attention was drawn to the importance of a high sugar content — which is quantitatively inherited — in parents with a relatively low pH to increase the chances of selecting seedlings with a good sugar/acid ratio.     

Note on an inoculation method to infect young apple seedlings with Nectria galligena Bres.

Summary Infection of 16 weeks old apple seedlings from the cross James Grieve x Gloster with Nectria galligena was realized by inoculating leaf marks with macroconidia and covering the inoculated marks with vaseline.     

Screening for resistance to Nectria galligena Bres. in cut shoots of apple

Summary To find a fast and reliable test to assess resistance to Nectria galligena in apple, different methods of inoculation were compared using macroconidia of N. galligena and one-year-old cut shoots from mature trees of Cox's Orange Pippin, IVT 69078-19, James Grieve and Jonathan.With the best inoculation method 11 genotypes were screened for resistance. Elstar, Golden Delicious, Jonathan and Lombart's Calville were highly resistant and the level of resistance of Ingrid marie, Gloster, Melrose, IVT 69078-19, Cox's Orange Pippin, James Grieve and Idared decreased in this order.The best inoculation method proved to be simple, giving results within four to nine weeks after inoculation.     

Evidence of gene introgression in apple using RAPD markers

Summary A genomic remnant of Malus floribunda clone 821 introgressed into the cultivated apple M. x domestica Borkh. was identified using randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers obtained by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Using a set of 59 oligonucleotide decamer primers, polymorphic DNA markers were identified among three pooled DNA samples. Based on the presence or absence of bands among bulked apple scab-resistant selections and cultivars, bulked scab-susceptible cultivars, and a M. floribunda clone 821 sample, one primer, A 15, identified amplified fragments in the scab-resistant bulked sample that was also unique to the M. floribunda clone 821. The unique band from M. floribunda clone 821 was amplified in four out of 17 scab-resistant selections/cultivars. This RAPD, designated OA15₉₀₀, identifies an introgressed fragment that has as yet no known function.     

Obtention of haploid embryos and plants through irradiated pollen technique in squash (Cucurbita pepo L.)

The influence of gamma ray doses (25, 50, 75, 100, 200, 300 and 400 Gy) and genotypes (Eskenderany F₁, Acceste F₁, Sakiz, Urfa Yerli) on the induction of haploid embryos obtained by irradiated pollen technique was studied in squash (Cucurbita pepo L.). Different shapes and stages of embryos were derived from seeds extracted from fruits harvested 4–5 weeks after pollination. As a result of the present study, haploid embryos and haploid plants were obtained, with haploid production strongly influenced by gamma ray doses, embryo stages and genotypes. Gamma ray doses of 25 and 50 Gy gave the highest parthenogenetical response. All of the point shape, globular shape, arrow tips and stick-shaped embryos developed into haploid plants. However, only 53.8% of torpedo and 23.1% of heart-shaped embryos gave haploid plants. In contrast, cotyledon-shaped and amorphous-shaped embryos produced only diploid plantlets. The number of embryos per 100 seeds was the highest in ‘Eskenderany F₁’ and ‘Sakiz’ genotypes. After in vitro culture, a total of 93 haploid plantlets were obtained. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Inheritance and selection of some fruit characters of apple. II. The relation between leaf and fruit pH as a basis for preselection

Summary The leaf pH of two year old apple seedlings was found to be sufficiently related to the fruit pH, measured when the seedlings were six to seven years old, to serve as a basis for pre-selection. Discarding all seedlings with an above average leaf pH (40% of the total) eliminated the majority (74%) of seedling with low-acid cum sweet fruits. The method was not effective for reducing the proportion of seedlings with high-acid cum sour fruits.     

The effects of apple rootstock genotypes on mineral content of scion leaves

Summary The relative effects of year to year variation and rootstock genotypes on the major content of leaves of four apple scion cultivars were studied. For nitrogen and phosphorus the main source of variation was due to years. For potassium, magnesium and calcium there were significant genetic effects. The results are discussed in relation to breeding for improved efficiency in mineral uptake in apple rootstocks. Particular reference is made to uptake of minerals associated with physiological disorders of stored apples.     

Quantitative genetics in an apple breeding strategy

Summary Open-pollinated seed of 500 genotypes of commercial cultivars, breeding selections and wild species of apples (Malus × domestica) was collected from overseas mixed-clone repositories. This is to generate the first generation of the new Apple Breeding Population.Subsequent generations will be intercrossed in a pair-crossing design. Recurrent selection for general combining ability (GCA) is the breeding method used for genetic improvement of the Breeding Population. Every parent in the control-pollinated breeding population is tested for GCA using a polycross mating design.The best individuals of the Breeding Population, intensively selected between families using the polycross GCA estimates, and also within families are intermated to produce a Cultivar Production Population. Trees selected from this have then to be evaluated in grafted clonal tests before commercial release.Each generation, a new Breeding Population of 500 genotypes is selected from the pair-cross families, based on parental GCA values (from polycross tests), full-sib family means and individual performance and then intercrossed. Greatest emphasis will be on within-family selection not between-family, so as to avoid reducing the effective population size.     

A comparison of apple and pear seedlings with reference to the juvenile period. II. Mode of inheritance

Summary Analysis of two incomplete half-diallel schemes of crosses, involving 22 apple and 33 pear progenies with 2500 and 5400 seedlings respectively, showed a highly significant GCA and an insignificant SCA variance for the juvenile period (J.P.). This indicates that the inheritance of the J.P. is of an additive nature, a mode of inheritance which is a function of the inheritance of a complex of factors governing growth. The mean J.P. of apple progenies varied between 3.4 and 5.0 years, that of pear progenies between 4.7 and 7.0 years. The implications for breeding are discussed.Also presented at the Juvenility Symposium held at West-Berlin, November 1976.