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Day-neutrals show promise for strawberry fields
New selections explored as acreage continues to decline
by RONDA PAYNE ABBOTSFORD – BC
Strawberry Growers Association members received exciting news at their annual general meeting in March when plant scientist and researcher Michael Dossett announced a new day-neutral (everbearing) variety has made it through cleanup and is now being prepared for mass grower trials. “We have received some
positive reports from small trials,” Dossett says of variety BC 10-2-1. “It yielded a bit better than Albion and was noted for excellent fruit quality and compact plants, leading to easy harvest.” Now that the plant is virus-
free, Dossett is working on getting it “bulked up” so it can go into larger-scale grower trials. He hopes to have clean plug plants ready for growers in August and between 5,000 and 10,000 plants ready for grower trials in a couple of years. The berry looked very good in trials in Quebec, he said, describing the variety as very firm and very sweet. Future trials will give
researchers “a really good read on whether it makes sense to move forward with releasing it.”
BC 10-2-1 isn’t the only
promising selection, however. Pat Moore, a research
professor in the horticulture department of Washington State University in Puyallup, highlighted several new strawberry varieties at the Pacific Agriculture Show in Abbotsford in January. At the top of Moore’s list is WSU 3066. “In the 2016 planting, we
had five varieties of promise. We need to put [WSU 3066] in another planting where it replicates.” Chad Finn, a geneticist with the US Department of Agriculture in Corvallis, Oregon, also addressed the Pacific Agriculture Show about new strawberry varieties, speaking primarily about June-bearing varieties. He considers Sweet Sunrise
good for both the fresh and processing market. It is a very early ripening variety and towards the end of harvest, it has even larger fruit than Tillamook. “It’s very easy to pick, very easy to see and good quality,” he adds.
Another variety Finn leans
toward is Charm, which shows high yields. “On our plots, we have medium-sized fruit,” Finn says, but growers taking the berries to farmers’ markets have proven that the fruit can get
COUNTRY LIFE IN BC • MAY 2018
Pat Moore, left, and colleague Chad Finn share the highlights of strawberry varieties with growers throughout the Pacific Northwest. RONDA PAYNE PHOTO
quite large. Charm processes well, is very durable and offers easy harvesting. Marys Peak is a variety with
big, open plants bearing large fruit. The berries are very sweet, like Tillamook, but not quite as intensely flavoured as Hood. “It works both for fresh and
for processing,” he says. “It tends to be a very easy to pick plant.” Wendy Hoashi-Erhardt, scientific assistant in the small fruit breeding program at WSU-Puyallup, discussed how the breeding programs in Washington are benefitting BC’s crops and boosting Oregon’s fresh berry market. Hoashi-Erhardt explained
that Puget Reliance is no longer the dominant choice in the fresh market. It has been supplanted by other cultivars, such as Albion, which climbed quickly into the top five since it was first introduced in 2004. “It’s a crucial cultivar for the
fresh market in in BC,” she told producers at the ag show. Rainier, she added, also
remains a stable and reliable cultivar for the BC fresh market. “Albion, Rainier, Seascape –
all are destined for (the BC) fresh market,” Hoashi-Erhardt, adding, “It’s Albion-dominant.” There is a high-volume of
strawberry research being conducted in Washington to assist Northwest growers.
TO WORK. READY “We’re also doing a
research study of strawberry growers,” says Hoashi-Erhardt, “and consumer taste panels on June and everbearing berries.” Julie Pond is a consultant with the Northwest Berry Foundation in Portland. While Oregon continues to be processing dominant, she says, strawberry acreage is declining dramatically in the state. “Fresh has been a really
large, loyal consumer base,” she says. “The demand definitely outweighs supply. Hood has a strong following. We are moving into the day- neutrals. Albion is the most popular.” Various June-bearing
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selections were planted in 2016 and evaluated in grower trials. Consumer taste tests and growers favoured Puget Crimson and Marys Peak. While both varieties were susceptible to powdery mildew, Puget Crimson showed excellent firmness. Its flavour was best when bright red. Any darker and the taste was a bit “winey” and not as fresh tasting. Marys Peak grew sweeter and darker the longer it remained on the plants.
Among day-neutral
varieties, Aromas had average levels of powdery mildew and more runners than Albion. However, the fruit was slightly smaller and the fruiting was not as repetitive. Seascape suffered moderate powdery mildew and put out a similar number of runners as Albion. Yield was good but it didn’t flower as repetitively as Albion. Both varieties did well in grower and taste trials.
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