Breeding of a new yellow flesh nectarine cultivar Zhongyoujinshuai

Abstract: Zhongyoujinshuai is an early ripening nectarine, derived from a cross between Zhongyoutao 4 and 98-5-24 in 2006 at experimental field. Zhongyoutao 4, the female parent, is an early ripening yel- low nectarine covered by shining red. 98- 5- 24, the pollen donation, is nectarine and yellow flesh. Zhongyoujinshuai was first selected in 2010 for its large fruit, hard flesh, early ripeness and high yield. It passed the run-off election and named in 2015, licensed by Ministry of Agriculture in 2018, approved by Henan Forest Variety Certification Committee in 2018. Under normal cultivation conditions, the av- erage fruit weight is 210 g, and maximum fruit weight is 420 g. Fruit is mainly elliptic with two sym- metrical halves. The top of the fruit is flat with shallow cavity and the suture, consistent mature state. The peel has beautiful color approximately 75% percent of bright red, smooth and hairless, the back- ground color is light yellow. Its flesh is brilliant yellow and firm texture. The peel cannot be peeled, and the core is sticky. The flavor is fragrant and sweet, with a soluble solids content of 14.5%. It is fertile without bringing in pollen donation, and its yield is relatively stable through experiments in Wenxian county of Henan province, Mengyin county of Shandong province and Fengxian county of Jiangsu prov- ince. The experiment results also show that under the condition of strictly sparse flowering and fruit, the fruit of this cultivar exhibits large fruits and high soluble solids content, the quality is more excellent. In Zhengzhou, middle of China, the first flower of Zhongyoujinshuai comes into bloom mostly appears in late March. Fruits ripen is in late June, about 90 days after blooming. The termination period of fallen leaves is mid-November, and the full growth period is 260 days. Compared with the current main plant- ing variety Zhongnongjinhui which is nectarine and yellow flesh matured in mid-June, the fruit mature period of Zhongyoujinshuai is about half a month later and the fruit size is larger. The tree of Zhongyou- jinshuai has a strong tree vigor, and attention should be taken to control the tree vigour during cultiva- tion; Y-shaped pruning can be adopted, with a ridge height of 2.0 m and a ridge width of 4.0 - 5.0 m. It is necessary to properly control the fertilizer and water and avoid flood irrigation. The fruit setting rate of this variety is very high, and it is necessary to increase the intensity of thinning flowers and fruits. The fruit of this variety is relatively large, the distance between fruits should be greater than 15.0 - 20.0 cm when thinning flowers and fruits. The appearance of fruit is very beautiful, and it can be cultivated with- out bags or bagging. However, in areas with heavy rain in the south, there is a phenomenon of cracked fruits, and bagging cultivation is recommended. The bagging time is generally carried out after the fruit is set, when the fruit development enters the stone hardening stage, and the insecticide and fungicide need to be sprayed before the bagging. The fruit has a moderate hardness, which needs to be harvested in a timely manner, and the whole cold chain transportation is better during transportation.