Interspecifi c hybridization of Prunus salicina Lindl. as a method for breeding Russian cultivars of Chinese plum and cherry plum

Most commercially grown Asian plum cultivars worldwide were developed using cultivars bred by L. Burbank in the late 19th and early 20th centuries through hybridization of Prunus salicina Lindl . with other diploid species. The pedigrees of 82 Chinese plum and 47 cherry plum cultivars were analyzed to assess the contribution of these cultivars to the development of Russian breeding programs. The analysis revealed that 19 Chinese plum cultivars (23%) and 32 cherry plum cultivars (68%) are interspecifi c hybrids derived from crosses involving P. salicina . Their pedigrees include the following cultivars: Burbank ( P. salicina × P. armeniaca ), Climax ( P. salicina × P. simonii ), and Wickson ( P. salicina × P. simonii ). Russian cultivars were developed under diverse environmental and climatic conditions beginning in the 1940s under the guidance of scientists and breeders A. N. Venyaminov, R. F. Kostina, H. K. Enikeev, G. V. Eremina, and A. V. Isachkina. The “fi rst-generation” cultivars were obtained by crossing introduced U.S. cultivars with local P. cerasifera and P. salicina var. ussuriensis. This generation included 7 Chinese plum cultivars and 10 cherry plum cultivars. The “second-generation” cultivars (11 Chinese plum cultivars and 10 cherry plum cultivars) were obtained by hybridizing fi rst-generation cultivars with one another and with P. cerasifera , as well as through open pollination. Among the first-generation cultivars, the Chinese plum cultivar Skoroplodnaya was involved in the largest number of successful hybrid combinations. It was used to develop five Chinese plum cultivars and seven cherry plum cultivars, including the cherry plum cultivar Kubanskaya Kometa. Most third-generation cultivars (11 of 13) were developed using Kubanskaya Kometa, indicating its high combining ability. The genome of Kubanskaya Kometa includes genetic contributions from P. salicina, P. salicina var. ussuriensis, P. simonii , and P. cerasifera .