New research expands genetic base of cultivated strawberry
Tuesday, January 18, 2011 - 11:34
in Biology & Nature
Today's most common cultivated strawberry, the familiar Fragaria x vananassa (F. xananassa), is believed to have resulted from a chance hybridization of two wild strawberry species in Europe more than 250 years ago. This hybridization combined the unique characteristics of both species, including the larger, firmer fruit of F. chiloensis with the darker red, more aromatic fruit of F. virginiana. The fact that F. xananassa has a narrow germplasm base has breeding ramifications. The species tolerates inbreeding poorly, and its low genetic diversity leaves the strawberry susceptible to disease and abiotic and biotic stresses.