Multivariate analysis of peach germplasm collection

EVANGELINA M; VALENTINI HG; DAORDEN ME; CERVIGNI DGL

Rosario

Congreso; 4to Congreso Argentino de Bioinformática y Biología Computacional; 2013

Widely popular for their sweet, juicy fruits and beautiful blossoms, Prunus persica has beenbred throughout the world. Market trends have renewed interest to extend the harvestseason, to reduce chemical inputs, and to ensure consistent fruit quality. In response, breedersare focussing efforts on developing varieties with higher fruit quality, better post harvest fruitcharacteristics and greater resistance to pests. Evaluation of peach varieties represents one ofthe most important targets in a breeding program. Morphological characterization andstatistical methods can be useful tools for characterization of germplasm collections. Sincemarket and climate depend on the region, the aims of breeding programs vary according tothe place where they are carried on [1]. Breeders from EEA San Pedro desire to obtain newvarieties with early harvest season, late flowering time, oversized fruits, firm flesh with lowadherence to the stone and bright red skin [2]. Thus, two hundred and nine peach genotypesgrown in EEA INTA San Pedro, which were originated in Argentina, Canada, Italy, France, USAand Mexico, were study to determine the degree of polymorphism and to detect thesimilarities among them. The aim of this study is to describe the variability of the collectionand determine the correlation between the traits.