Delegation of FSSP / University of Florida, USA, visits Chile with its new varieties
"It is very important to maintain the beneficial properties of blueberries, this contributes to increasing consumption and the growth of the industry", John Beutenmuller, Executive Director of FFSP.
A delegation led by John Beuttenmuller, Executive Director of the Florida Foundation Seed Producers, FFSP, responsible for licensing the varieties of blueberries produced at the University of Florida; Dudley Calfee, president of the Florida Producers Association; and Patricio Muñoz, the new blueberry geneticist at the University of Florida; They visited the country to observe the behavior of the plants and to share with Chile the new varieties produced.
The delegation was received by the executives of SunnyRidge Nurseries, who took them to visit their own facilities and other production points where they were pleasantly surprised by the behavior of their products.
We spoke with John Beuttenmuller, who told us that this trip will be spread across several countries to share with growers wherever their plants are grown, in order to observe their behavior on the ground.
"The focus is not only on the new varieties, but also on the existing varieties that have been planted in Chile and how they behave", He told us.
- What are the new varieties?
Avanti, Endura, Arcadia ...
- Are they planted somewhere?
No, not yet. We are in tests in the USA
- What climate or region are they most appropriate for?
They are designed for cold weather and early harvest.
- How do they ensure good productive behavior in other climates or regions ...
All our varieties are selected according to their behavior in Florida, where the conditions are very severe, often the varieties developed in Florida are taken to different regions of the world and they behave very well due to this roughness of our climatic conditions.
Beuttenmuller, explains that "Florida is probably the most challenging place in the world to grow blueberries, due to pests, diseases, soil type, rain, etc. There are many environmental conditions in Florida that make blueberry production difficult. If something can survive in Florida, it's because it's a very strong variety"He says.
Regarding the new varieties, Beutenmuller explains that Endura is of larger fruit, of early harvest, and selected due to its perennial production behavior. The objective is to offer an early and long fruit, because the benefit of evergreen, or perennial production, "is that you can have a longer production. In perennial production it is not normal to have a crop concentrated in 6 weeks, but you can harvest by 16 or 12 weeks", Says the Executive Director of FFSP.
Evergreen
The evergreen system, or management evergreen, contemplates growing blueberry plants in an environment with absence of strong frost, also requires keeping the leaves developed during the previous growing season in a healthy condition in the flowering and ripening of the fruit of the following season. On the other hand, we must continue with some level of fertilization and irrigation throughout the winter months, and finally, develop a harvest of months instead of weeks, with high production moments.
To maintain these conditions, in some areas, protection technologies should be resorted to through high tunnels or structures that help prevent the impact of frost.
He tells us that this trip began in Mexico, with the aim of also presenting Patricio Muñoz, the new geneticist of the University of Florida, and will continue in Peru at a future date within the year.
- How do you see the blueberry market, the projections, in general?
Around the world there is an incredible growth in the expansion, plantation and opening to new territories. Peru is entering the market, and not on a small scale, but on a very large scale, there are many fields with blueberry plantations and I believe that it is the testimony of the quality of the product and the opening of new markets. There is expansion to new destinations, such as the opening to Asia from Chile, which is an important export market. The world is constantly growing and the population is growing in our favor.
Finally we asked if at the time of "thinking" a variety and creating a new plant, they were careful to maintain the healthy qualities that characterize the blueberry fruit.
"Especially, within the University of Florida, the main objective is that, through the program, antioxidants and all the healthy benefits are maintained in the product. It is of great importance to maintain the beneficial properties of blueberries, this contributes to increase the consumption and growth of the industry".
It was a friendly and fluid conversation, in which at all times the delegation was satisfied with what was seen in Chile in relation to the behavior of the plants and the reality of the industry in general.
"We live in a globalized world and we appreciate our partnership with the Chilean industry. We are proud of this relationship and the opportunity to be here with the Chilean industry, "concluded John Beuttenmuller.
The plants
Avanti, Endura and Arcadia are a series of new blueberry varieties created by the blueberry breeding program at 2015 that have exceptional performance when grown under an evergreen management system.
NEXT It is the earliest variety, high quality fruit and a small vintage scar. It has pruin, very early and can be grown using hydrogen cyanamide, but some loss of yield is expected due to early flower development. The biggest drawback of Avanti is that he often matures too early.
Arcadia, on the other hand, is a vigorous plant with an excellent tolerance to leaf diseases. Of very large, sweet fruits, with a good scar and firmness. Arcadia has had a much higher yield when produced under evergreen production, or under tunnels, than when grown in a typical deciduous production.
Endura It is a variety of large fruits and excellent blue color. Of the three new releases, Endura has obtained better results in the trials and has a high performance under both modalities, both evergreen and deciduous.
Avanti, Arcadia and Endura are protected varieties and must be licensed for propagation. Information on this can be obtained from the Florida Foundation Seed Producers (FFSP) at 352-273-3656 or by visiting ffsp.net.
Source: BlueberriesChile.cl - BlueberriesConsulting.com
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