Compatibility Among Plum Cultivars Adapted to Southern Brazil

Abstract

The best pollinizers for the Japanese plum cultivars ‘Amarelinha,’ ‘Burbank,’ ‘Harry Pickstone,’ ‘Ozark Premier,’ ‘Pluma 7,’ ‘Reubennel,’ ‘Rosa Mineira,’ ‘Santa Rosa,’ ‘The First,’ ‘Wade’ and for the European prune ‘D’Agen’ were studied through controlled hybridization in the field and also in the laboratory, using the cultivars that bloom at the same time. Self fertility was also assessed. In-vivopollen tube growth was studied in the laboratory using fluorescent microscopy and common light microscopy with differential dye and results were compared to fruit set in the field.

Under southern Brazil conditions ‘Amarelinha,’ ‘Harry Pickstone,’ ‘Methley,’ ‘Reubennel’ and ‘Rosa Mineira’ had a relatively good fruit set when self pollinated. The same was true with the European cultivar ‘D’Agen.’

‘Burbank’ can be pollinated by ‘Ozark Premier’ and ‘Ozark Premier’ by ‘Burbank.’ ‘Pluma 7’ showed a high degree of incompatibility but ‘Reubennel’ and ‘Amarelinha’ are good pollinizers for it. The cultivar ‘Reubennel’ can be self-pollinated or can be pollinated by ‘Amarelinha,’ Pluma 7’ or ‘Rosa Mineira.’ ‘Rosa Mineira’ can be self-pollinated and ‘Amarelinha,’ ‘Methley’ and ‘Reubennel’ are good pollinizers for it also.

Results from the use of the light microscope with lacmoid as a dye did not differ significantly from those obtained with the fluorescent microscope.