New strawberries from the USDA cooperative breeding programmes

The United States Department of Agriculture has been breeding strawberries since 1919-1920 to provide new cultivars adapted to specific regions and for specific markets. The present work is carried on at three Federal locations: Beltsville, Maryland, Poplarville, Mississippi, and Corvallis, Oregon; with about 15 State Agricultural Experiment Stations and about 12 private firms cooperating. Since the Second International Strawberry Symposium meeting in Baltimore, there has been significant progress in each of our regional breeding programs, leading to the release of 14 clones with two more expected in 1997. The released clones are: 1) from Poplarville and Beltsville - four anthracnose-resistant breeding lines US 70 and US 438 (both early), and US 292 and US 159 (both late); and an anthracnose and red stele resistant cultivar, Pelican, which will yield with and has as large fruit size as Chandler. This is intended as a midwinter to early spring shipping berry for the southern United States; 2) from Beltsville and cooperators - five red stele resistant berries adapted to the midwestern and northeastern United States which can be planted spring or summer, flat or on raised beds and can be marketed fresh or frozen: 'Mohawk', very early with extended harvest, medium yield and size, and very good flavour; 'Northeaster', early with large size, firm fruit and strong flavour; 'Delmarvel', second early with condensed ripening, good size and yield, and outstanding flavour and aroma; 'Primetime', midseason, large fruit, attractive, high yield, good flavour, a shipping berry; and 'Latestar', a late, large, very high yielding type with good flavour. There are also two red stele resistant cultivars adapted to matted row culture and to the fluctuating temperature extremes of the North Central United States - 'Winona', late, hardy, very high in yield, size and quality; and 'Mesabi' (in 1997), midseason, hardy, very high in yield, size, texture and quality; and 3) from Corvallis - three clones that are principally for processing, possessing high colour and acidity, high yield, easy capping and adaptation to the Pacific Northwest. They are called 'Redcrest', 'Redgem', and 'Bountiful'.