New Germplasm for Breeding: Pink-flowered and White-fruited Strawberry

Abstract

Most strawberry plants have white flowers and red fruit. We developed a new strawberry selection with pink flowers and white fruit, and named it G23. Basic phenotypic data were recorded over years of observation and experimentation with the flower crown diameter, petal color, and rate of fruit set, as well as fruit skin color, flesh color, seed color and attachment status, fruit weight and shape, soluble solids contents, and firmness. We found that G23 bloomed with a stable pink flower and produced white fruit consistently with a relatively high fruit-set rate compared with its female parent, ‘Pink Panda’. G23 displayed high resistance to Fusarium wilt (Fusarium oxysporum) and anthracnose (Colletotrichum spp.). It is also tolerant of high temperatures (up to 40 °C) and long-term drought. The asexual propagation ability of G23 is high, with ∼60 to 100 stolon ramets formed during the summer. In summary, this new pink-flowered and white-fruited strawberry germplasm is suitable for ornamental use, as a result of its remarkable flowering and fruiting characteristics. In addition, it provides opportunities for innovative strawberry germplasm for future breeding.