A novel sweet aromatic cultivar of Actinidia eriantha ‘Ganlü No. 1’

Abstract: Actinidia eriantha Benth is a species of Actinidia genus in the Actinidiaceae family and is widely distributed in China, including Jiangxi Province. Its fruit is rich in ascorbic acid with great potential for development. However, the soluble solid content of the wild fruit is generally low (less than 14.0%). The fruit tastes sour and astringent, and doesn’t meet the standard of fresh fruit. The sweet fruit has become an important target of genetic improvement in A. eriantha. The abundant germplasm resources of A. eriantha in China provide an opportunity for breeding cultivars with high sugar content. Fortunately, a strain (code:‘MM-24’) from wild seedlings with high sugar content was found in Nancheng County, Fuzhou City, Jiangxi Province. In February 2009, the scions were collected from the strain and grafted on the 8- year old trees of A. chinensis var deliciosa Miliang No. 1 for field trail. The leaf shape was oval, with no hairs. Each inflorescence had three to five single flowers. The flowers were corymbose. The color of petal and anther was pink and yellow, respectively. Each flower had 32 to 42 anthers. Both shoot and semi-lignified branch were densely covered with short gray hairs. The shape of pores on the branch was round or fusiform. The fruit was long cylindrical to oval, the beak was slightly obtuse, the surface of the fruit was densely covered with short white hairs. The fruit size was medium and uniform, with an average fruit mass of 46.22 g and a maximum fruit mass of 73.50 g. The flesh was green and had a sweet flavor. The soluble solid content of fruit was 18.4%-22.2%, the titrable acid content was 0.94%, the soluble sugar content was 9.25%, the dry matter content was 21.74%, and the ascorbic acid content was 662.6 mg·100 g-1 . The full flowering period was in early May, and the fruit mature period was from late October to early November in Yichun City, Jiangxi Province. The vine had strong growth, heat resistance and drought resistance, and strong adaptability. Its fruits were uniform, easy to peel and could be stored at room temperature for 30 to 50 d, and the comprehensive traits were excel-lent. It was finally named as Ganlü No. 1 and granted new plant patent by China Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs in 2019. It would be recommended to use horizontal greenhouse frames or T-shaped small trellises for cultivation. During the bud stage, it was essential to promptly perform“zero bud” folding and pruning. Fruit thinning and bagging were required at the young fruit stage. The fruits could be harvested when the soluble solid content reached 6.5%. The comprehensive pruning methods of truncation, thinning and retracting should be adopted to renew and rejuvenate in time after the leaf fall in winter and before the next spring. The spacing of plant rows should be (2.5-3.0) m × (3.0-4.0) m. The pollination cultivar was A. chinensis var. chinensis Ganxiong No. 2. Generally, fertilization should be applied two to three times a year, mainly with nitrogen fertilizer in spring, and mainly with fast-available phosphorus, potassium and calcium fertilizer in summer, and mainly with organic fertilizer in autumn.