Breeding report of a new early ripening sand pear cultivar Jinzaojing

The fruit surface of green- skinned sand pear varieties is highly susceptible to russeting, which compromises the fruit's appearance and market quality. As a result, the development of russet/ brown- skinned cultivars that can be grown without bagging has become a major goal in current sand pear breeding. Jinzaojing is an early-season sand pear and derived from a cross between Wonhwang and Cuiguan in 2013 at Institute of Fruit and Tea, Hubei Academy of Agriculture Sciences. The seeds underwent sand stratification in December and were sown in January 2014, resulting in 130 seedlings. Fruiting commenced in 2017. Following continuous observation over multiple years, the plant in the first row, thirteenth position, was initially selected in 2017 for its early ripening time, attractive appearance, and excellent quality. After regional adaptability testing at three sites (including Wuhan, Zhijiang and Qianjiang in Hubei province) over four years from 2019 to 2023, it was finally selected in 2023. It was designated as SY1-13 and officially named Jinzaojing in 2023. The cultivar was registered by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs in March 2025，with the certificate number GPD Pear (2025) 420002. This species is a tall arboreal plant, reaching up to 5 m in height. It exhibits vigorous growth, with a densely branched crown and an overall upright habit. The current-year branches display a yellowbrown coloration and bear sparse lenticels. The leaves are ovate in shape, acuminate at the apex, measuring approximately 9.7 cm in length and 6.5 cm in width, with sharply serrated margins. The flowers have a diameter of about 3.3 cm. Color of unopened flower is white, and anthers are pink. The fruit is predominantly round in shape, featuring a russet-colored peel. Its flesh is white, crisp, rich juice, fine texture without aroma. The average fruit weight 340 g, fruit shape index 0.97, persistent sepals. The content of total soluble solids is 12.40%, soluble sugar content 7.5%, the content of total acid is 0.11%, vita-min C 1.53 mg·100 g-1 , flesh hardness 5.60 kg·cm-2 . The fruit exhibits excellent quality, with a development period of approximately 110 days. Under the climatic conditions of the Wuhan region, it typically reaches maturity in mid-July. The number of flowers per inflorescence is 6-7. Capability of continuously fruiting is strong. It is resistant to pear black spot. The fruit possesses an extended storage capacity, maintaining quality for approximately six months under cold storage conditions and remaining marketable for more than 20 days at ambient shelf conditions. Suitable cultivation area is Hubei province and similar areas in the Yangtze river basin. Jinzaojing exhibits moderate branching capability, and a bud break rate of 81.5%. The average fruit cluster set is 3.5 fruits. The trees initiate fruit production in the third growing season following planting and achieve full fruiting capacity by the fifth year. During the full production period, the yield exceeds 2100 kg per 666.7 m2 . It shows no significant alternate bearing phenomenon. It is self-incompatible, requiring the reasonable allocation of compatible pollinizer varieties. For orchard establishment, it is advisable to select level terrain with neutral sandy soil that demonstrates good moisture retention and nutrient-holding capacity. A planting spacing of 3 meters between trees within rows and 4 meters between rows is recommended. Cuiguan, Sucui 1, Housui are the most suitable pollination cultivars, and the configuration of pollinizer is 3∶1.