New Apple Varieties May Be Available In Four Years

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29222, 4 June 1960, Page 17

New Apple Varieties May Be Available In Four Years

-rtie Press' Special Service

AUCKLAND, June 3. Home orchardists should have -bout a dozen new apple varieties for their gardens in the next tijree or four years, as a result of carried out in Auckland and Jiavelock North by the fruit research station of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research. Two new varieties are likely to be grown commercially. The aim of the experimental programme is to discover and develop apple strains for home and commercial growers. About 900 different types of apples, from many parts of the ff orld, have been grown at the experimental orchard in Havelock North, under the direction of Dr. D W. McKenzie. The results have been analysed and recommendations made to the Apple and pear Marketing Board and commercial growers. Describing the programme, Dr. H. M. Mouat, of the research station at Mt. Albert, said that apple varieties had been imported from the United States, Japan, Turkey, Scandinavia and many other parts of the world. Two specimens of each were grown on selected dwarf stock and the fruit was studied. Outstanding Possibilities

Locally raised seedlings were also studied, to give a representative coverage. About 700 of the varieties had now fruited for two or three years and, of these, six had shown outstanding possibilities for commercial use.

A conference last year among representatives of the board, the Departments of Agriculture and Scientific and Industrial Research and the growers had laid down the requirements for new varie-

t ae“i£:. s “ ,ypes ' , ; Mites P“‘h ° h ne the requests was for a high-coloured good quality late apple, and one of the six, from a New Zealand seedling raised in Napier, seemed suitable, said Dr. ?J 0 ! la k It l ' vas one of two varieties mat the board was interested in commercial development. rhe new late apple had a flavour something like a Golden Delicious.

The other variety . favoured known as Spartan, came from British Columbia. It was a good red apple.

the others recommended, two American varieties were rejected because the fruit was too big for the European or New Zealand markets, said Dr Mouat. Several vatieties studied were not suitable for commercial use but would be good for home gardens. About a dozen would be available in three or four years. The board would probably encourage growers to put in small lots of the two new commercial varieties, said Dr Mouat, but it would be 10 or 12 years before much of the fruit was on the market. When it did become available, however, it would help greatly to fill in the gaps in the present export trade.