Budagovsky, Geneva, Pillnitz, and Malling Apple Rootstocks Affect ‘Fuji’ Performance Over Eight Years in the 2010 NC-140 ‘Fuji’ Apple Rootstock Trial

Abstract

In 2010, an orchard trial of apple rootstocks was established at seven locations in the United States and Mexico using ‘Zhen ^®Fuji Aztec ^c.o.v.’ as the scion cultivar. Rootstocks included two named clones from the Budagovsky series (B.9, B.10), five unreleased Budagovsky clones (B.7-3-150, B.64-194, B.67-5-32, B.70-6-8, and B.71-7-22), four named Cornell-Geneva clones [Geneva ^®11 (G.11), Geneva ^®41 (G.41), Geneva ^®202 (G.202), and Geneva ^®935 (G.935)], nine unreleased Cornell-Geneva clones (CG.2034, CG. 3001, CG.4003, CG.4004, CG.4013, CG.4214, CG.4814, CG.5087, and CG.5222), one named clone from the Pillnitz series (Supp.3) and one unreleased Pillnitz clone (PiAu 51-11), and three Malling clones as controls (M.9 NAKBT337, M.9 Pajam 2, and M.26 EMLA). For G.41 and G.935, there were both stool-bed-produced (N) and tissue-culture-produced (TC) rootstock liners used for trees. All trees were trained to a Tall Spindle. After 8 years, the greatest mortality was for trees on Supp.3 (22%), M.9 NAKBT337 (21%), M.9 Pajam 2 (19%), B.71-7-22 (19%), and M.26 EMLA (16%). Rootstocks were partitioned into size classes from sub-dwarf to large semi-dwarf. B.7-3-150, B.70-6-8, B.67-5-32, B.64-194, and PiAu 51-11 resulted in large semi-dwarf trees with comparably low cumulative yield efficiency and projected cumulative yield per ha. CG.4004, CG.3001, CG.5222, and M.26 EMLA produced moderate semi-dwarf trees. The most yield efficient and highest yielding trees in this group were on CG.4004, CG.3001, and CG.5222. The large dwarf category included G.935N, G.935TC, CG.4814, G.41N, and M.9 Pajam 2. Trees on G.935N and G.935TC were the most yield efficient, and G.935N had the highest projected per-hectare cumulative yield for their size category. Trees on CG.4214, M.9 NAKBT337, G.11, G.202, B.10, G.41TC, and Supp.3 were moderate dwarfs. Trees on CG.4214, M.9 NAKBT337, G.11, G.202, and B.10 were the most yield efficient and had the highest potential yield per hectare in this size category. The small dwarf category included CG.2034, B.9, and CG.4003. These three rootstocks produced trees which were similarly yield efficient and had similar projected per-hectare yields. B.71-7-22 was classified as a sub-dwarf, and produced a tree which was highly yield efficient, with a relatively low projected per-hectare yield.