Breeding of a new loquat cultivar Xishu 2

Abstract: Xishu 2 is a medium-maturing and yellow- fleshed loquat hybrid. In 2010, we carried out a hybrid between Dawuxing as the female parent and Guifei as the male parent. In the next year, we planted the hybrids in the loquat demonstration garden of Horticulture Research Institute of Sichuan Academy of Agricultural Sciences in Longquanyi District, Chengdu. Among them, the individual plant 4-32 began to bear fruit in 2015, and a large number of fruits were produced in 2016, showing good flavor, pure sweetness, and resistance to sunburn and leaf spot disease. From then on, we identified it as the preferred individual plant. This single plant has been tested for propagation in Longquanyi District, Tianfu New Area and Xindu District of Chengdu city since 2016. From 2017 to 2019, we conducted field investigations and observations on the growth and development, flowering and fruiting habits and fruit quality of this variety. We were confident that its excellent traits can be inherited stably and meet our breeding objectives. Every year when the fruit of this cultivar was mature, we invited peers, professional growers and other relevant personnel to taste and evaluate on site. On May 18, 2019, the cultivar successfully passed the field technical identification of new fruit varieties organized by Sichuan Seed Station. This cultivar is moderately strong and the crown is open. Its biennial branches are brown, and the number of villi is more. The leaf shape is elliptic, the leaf tip is blunt round, and the leaf base is wedge-shaped. The average length of mature leaves is 22.06 cm, the average width is 7.10 cm, the aver-age thickness is 0.39 mm, and the petiole length is 8.55 mm. The adaxial midrib of its leaf blade is raised, the lateral veins are curved, and the abaxial reticulate veins are distinct. In addition, the front of the leaf is pleated, but the front of the older leaf is smooth and the back is always downy. The inflorescences of this cultivar are moderate in size and conical in length and width, averaging 13.2 cm; The main shaft is upright and upward, but the supporting shaft is flat. The flower quantity of this cultivar is moderate and the inflorescence is loose, with 40 to 100 flowers per inflorescence. Its fruit is nearly round with good uniformity, and the fruit weight is about 40- 55 g. The apex of the fruit is flat and broad. The fruit dots are small, and the hairs on the fruit surface are short and sparse. Its sepals are very flat and the sepal pores are open. Its skin and flesh are yellow and easy to peel. The pulp is soft and tender, with a lot of juice and pure sweet flavor, and the soluble solid content is 15.30%, which is of very good quality. The number of seeds range from 2 to 5, and the average edible rate is 71.6%. The whole growth period of the fruit is about 160 days, and the fruit is mature in the early and middle May in Xindu District of Chengdu (104°12′24″E, 30°46′46″N). The skin of this cultivar is thick. And it’s resistant to leaf spot disease. In addition, Xishu 2 has a strong ability to flower and bear fruit. This makes it suitable for cultivating in Sichuan Basin and the mountainous areas with low and middle elevations around the basin.