Breeding of a new pear cultivar Xinchi

The Xinchi pear originated from a chance discovery of a seedling tree of Laiyang Chili in Shengjinbo Village, Guanshui Town, Muping District, Yantai City, in 2009. In 2011, scions were grafted onto 6-year-old Zhongli 1 pear trees for observation. In 2012, they were grafted onto Pyrus betulaefolia rootstocks for propagation, and an orchard was established in 2013. The variety was certified and named Xinchi in 2014, with the new orchard commencing fruit production in 2016. Comparisons were made between the new orchard and top-grafted trees during 2017—2019, confirming stable fruit traits such as average single fruit mass, natural calyx shedding rate, and soluble solid content. A new plant variety right was granted (CNA20201003780) in September 2023. The branches of Xinchi pear are dark brown and have a smooth surface. The one-year-old branches are orange-brown. The bark is clean, with large, white, oblong lenticels that are small and sparse, and there are no thorns. The cultivar exhibits separate leaf and flower buds, and the leaf buds are pointed. Young leaves are reddish-brown, ovate, large, and long. The petioles are 3.42 cm long and 0.13 cm thick. Mature leaves are green, with sharp serrated margins and awned teeth, an abruptly pointed leaf apex, and a rounded leaf base. The Xinchi pear has an ovoid shape, with an average single fruit mass of 385.6 g (maximum 540.0 g), similar to Laiyang Chili. Its skin is yellow-green with a rough texture and prominent lenticels. The stem cavity is deep, and the calyx cavity is also deep, with a natural calyx shedding rate of up to 96%, far exceeding that of natural Laiyang Chili (9.5% ), which significantly reduces labor and time costs for manual calyx removal. The flesh is white, fine, and crisp, with small and sparse stone cells, abundant juice, and has flesh recovery of 74%. At maturity, the peeled flesh has a hardness around 7.7 kg· cm-2 , and the soluble solids content exceeds 13.7%. It has a rich flavor and superior quality. Xinchi pear trees are vigorous with a semispreading growth habit. They exhibit moderate branching ability, primarily bearing fruit on short branches, and have a high capacity for continuous fruiting. The fruit development period of the Xinchi pear is 155 days, ripening in mid-September in Yantai area, which is 10-15 days earlier than the Laiyang Chili. The Xinchi pear has moderate drought resistance and strong disease resistance. The fruit has excellent storage performance, can be stored for 5 to 7 months in ordinary cold storage. They thrive best in sandy loam soil with good fertility and irrigation in Shandong. For orchard establishment, vigorous seedlings are selected. The recommended planting spacing is (3-4) m × (4-5) m. Recommended pollinizers include Cuiyu and Sucui 1. The preferred tree form is central leader with spaced-out layers. Organic fertilizers should be applied as a priority. The main diseases of Xinchi pear are pear scab, pear rust, pear ring rot, and pear black spot. Major pests include pear psylla, pear aphids, Comstock mealybug, and pear fruit borers. The use of highly toxic and high-residue pesticides is prohibited in pest control, with preference given to biological and low-toxicity, low-residue pesticides.