PROMISING SWEET CHERRY CULTIVARS IN SLOVENIA

Sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) growing in Slovenia has been a tradition for more than 140 years.
The Gorica region has a leading position in cherry cultivation.
Systematic research on sweet cherry cultivars started after 1959 when a collection orchard was planted in Šempeter near Gorica.
According to the research outcomes, the list of suitable cultivars for sweet cherry growing in Slovenia has been changed several times.
In 1993, the Fruit Growing Centre at Bilje was established and since then, research on sweet cherry cultivars and rootstocks has been one of the most important activities at the Centre.
During this period, we have tested 72 cultivars planted in two collection orchards at two locations.
After a several-year-long investigation into recent cherry cultivars of foreign origin, those most important for general production in Slovenia have been proposed: ‘Burlat’, ‘Celeste’, ‘Giorgia’, ‘Van’, ‘Sunburst’, ‘Germersdorfer’ and ‘Lapins’. ‘Early Lory’, ‘Burlat C1’, ‘Moreau’, ‘Isabella’, ‘Prime Giant’, ‘Garnet’, ‘Brooks’, ‘New Star’, ‘Big Lory’, ‘Canada Giant’, ‘Summit’, ‘Kordia’, ‘Regina’ and ‘Sweetheart’ are of local importance.
The promising mid-maturing Slovene cultivar ‘Vigred’ and late-maturing local cultivars ‘Petrovka’ and ‘Pavliška’ are among those of limited importance.
The vigour and productivity of some of the most promising sweet cherry cultivars in Slovenia, as well as their physical and chemical fruit characteristics, are reported.

V International Cherry Symposium

N. Fajt, E. Komel, V. Usenik

Prunus avium, yield, vigour, physical-chemical fruit characteristics, fruit quality

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2008.795.51