Characteristics of newly-bred domestic and introduced apricot cultivars (P. armeniaca L.) grown in the region of Čačak

Abstract

The region of Čačak (central part of Serbia) is known as an apricot growing area. ‘Hungarian Best’ is the most grown cultivar in Serbia, followed by ‘Roksana’, ‘NS-4’, ‘NS Rodna’. The large number of cultivars ripens in the second half of July and they are commonly used for processing. The aim of this research was the evaluation of early- and late-season cultivars, in order to improve apricot cultivar assortment and enrich the offer of fresh fruits and products. Properties of nine apricot cultivars grafted onto Myrobalan (P. Cerasifera Ehrh.) were examined. Cultivar ‘Hungarian Best’ was used as a standard. The experiment was conducted during the two-year period (2017-2018) at the experimental orchard, located 10 km north-west from Čačak, in the village Gornja Gorevnica, located at 390 m altitude. The orchard was established in 2014, with 6 x 3.5 m tree spacing and vase training system. The earliest flowering onset was observed in the cultivars ‘Goldrich’ and ‘Tsunamy’ (‘Goldrich’ flowered 3 days and ‘Tsunamy’ 1-2 days before the control cultivar). On the other side, ‘Roksana’, ‘Farbaly’, ‘Kech Psar’ and ‘Zerdelija’ flowered 2-3 days after the control cultivar. ‘Tsunamy’ is particularly distinguished by its ripening time as an early-season cultivar (ripens at the beginning of June), while ‘Farbaly’ and ‘Kech Psar’ were determined as late-ripening cultivars (the second half of August). As regards fruit size, compared to ‘Hungarian Best’ (53.54 g), the largest fruit was in ‘Roksana’ (82.44 g), followed by ‘Zaklopačka Ruža’ (80.42 g) and ‘Goldrich’ (56.13 g). The highest soluble solids content was detected in the late-season cultivar ‘Kech Psar’ (24.46° Brix).