Introduction and breeding of shadbush in Russia and abroad

Abstract

Shadbush is one of the underutilized berry crops. Originally, it was an ornamental crop, but now it is increasingly used as a food crop. Numerous species of shadbush belong to the genus Amelanchier Medik.; wild species grow in North America, Europe, as well as in Western and Eastern Asia, and each region has different species composition. The year of 1590 marked the beginning of introduction of wild shadbush species with the most valuable features to other countries. In the 19th century, the introduction of shadbush became most popular. In 1800, shadbush breeding was launched in Canada, and then in the USA. In 1937, the production of commercial varieties was established. At present, in Russia, the most productive work on introduction and breeding of shadbush is carried out in Michurinsk (All-Russian Scientific Research Institute of Horticulture named after I.V. Michurin), Novosibirsk (Central Siberian Botanical Garden of SB RAS), and Moscow (N.V. Tsitsin Main Botanical Garden). Unfortunately, the assortment of shadbush varieties in Russia is still quite limited and is represented by only two varieties. In recent years, the development of methods of shadbush clonal micropropagation has been underway, which makes it possible to obtain planting material on an industrial scale and accelerate the reproduction of rare varieties.