Breeding report of a new ornamental peach cultivar Zhongxue

Abstract: Zhongxue is an ornamental peach variety, which was bred from natural pollination of 2007-23 generated from the cross of Hongchuizhi × Juhuatao. Tree of Hongchuizhi is weeping, and flower is dark red, showy. Juhuatao produces flowers that are chrysanthemum-like and pink. Fruit were harvested in 2010 when they reached physiologically ripeness in August, then their seeds were disinfected with 75% alcohol and stored in storage at (3±2) ℃. After three months, when the seeds germinated, they were planted in pots. 56 progeny seedlings were obtained in the greenhouse finally. In late April, the seedlings were planted at 1.0 m × 4.0 m in the field and managed in general cultivation way. Because of its special color and pattern, it was selected in 2013. From 2016 to 2019, the adaptability test of Zhongxue was conducted at Lishui and Nanjing. Through 7 consecutive years of tests, all the traits proved stable. The tree vigor is moderate with an opening canopy. Leaves are green, long elliptic to lan-ceolate, with a cuneate base. They are 12.8 cm long and 3.6 cm wide, with a length-to-width ratio of 3.54. There are 1 or 2 reniform glands, with a petiole 0.74 cm in length. The flower color is white and chrysanthemum-like, with fourteen to twenty-nine petals. The diameter is about 4.1 cm. The yellow an-thers with pollens are on the twenty-seven to forty-five light-white filaments. The single pistil is short than stamen. Sepals are green with nine-ten pieces, with a yellow-green calyx tub. In a 7-year-old tree, the percentage of spurs, short fruiting shoots, middle fruit shoots, long fruit shoots and water shoots with flower buds were 0.7%, 11.8%, 34.7%, 52.1% and 0.7%. The first flower bud is formed at the 3rd or 4th node. The internode length is moderate, 2.61 cm with 56 flowers per meter. Bud break occurs in early March in Nanjing area, and the flower begins to blossom in late March, and the flowering period lasts for more than half a mouth. Fruit is mainly ovate, with greenish-white flesh that tastes sour and bit-ter when mature. The fruit is small, hairiness, with an average fruit weight about 30 g, and can be as large as 41.5 g. The fruit development period is about 150 d and mature in mid-August in Nanjing area.With strong adaptability, the cultivar can be planted in the Yangtze River and Yellow River basins. It is mainly cultivated in the open field in sightseeing parks, courtyards, streets and other leisure places. The trees can also be potted. Planting sites should be with loose soil, good drainage, and shining. Courtyards and streets should be sunny and well ventilated. Insufficient light affects the development of flower buds, resulting in small and sparse flowers, and prone to develop diseases and pests. In order to enhance the ornamental value of spring flower, the plant should be trimmed in winter or early spring to cut off the disorderly branches, so that the overall shape of the plant is elegant when flowering. In summer, up-right vigorous shoots should be well managed in order to control their growth and promote flower differ-entiation. Measures to prevent and control diseases and pests are taken on a daily basis, such as spray-ing lime sulfur during the period of flower bud expansion, and applying pesticides to prevent the occur-rence of aphids and bacterial shot-hole.