Hazelnut (Corylus domestica Kos. et Opal.) breeding results for anthropoadaptability

Abstract

Aim. Hazelnut (Corylus domestica Kos. et Opal.) fruits are valuable raw materials for the confectionery industry, the production of biologically active additives to food products and feed, as well as for obtaining from hazelnut oil the liposomal nanoemulsions and nanodispersions, which are part of medicinal preparations. The domestic hazelnut production level is insufficient and unable to satisfy either the needs of the processing industry or the demand of the population of Ukraine for fresh nuts. This motivated the search for ways to improve the assortment of this nut-bearing crop, foremost the creation of new cultivars in possession of anthropoadaptive features complexes. Methods. Study of the alien and originating in the NDP "Sofiyivka" of the NAS of Ukraine Corylus spp. specimens. During hybridization, the sleeve cages made of dense FPP-15 (Petrianov filter linen) fabric were used to isolate branches with female flowers. Pollination was done without removing the cages, injecting pollen into the cage with insufflator MO-03. The parental pairs' selection for crossing, and growing, evaluation, and selection of hybrid seedlings was done using standard methods. Results. It turned out that the segregation spectra for economic and useful traits of the anthropoadaptive complex in the progeny of seedlings from controlled intraspecific crosses did not significantly differ from the seedlings obtained as a result of free cross-pollination of hazelnut cultivars of the NDP "Sofiyivka" collection. Instead, the involvement of specimens of C. chinensis and C. avellana 'Fuscorubra' in the hybridization contributed to obtaining a number of new hazelnut cultivars. At the same time, in contrast to literature data, hybrids from pollination of hazelnut cultivars with C. chinensis pollen were better than in reciprocal combinations. So new highly productive cultivar 'Sofiivskyi 15' was selected from the seedling population of ('Garibaldi'×C. chinensis). Conclusions. This discrepancy between the results of our crosses and the literature data can be explained by the fact that our C. chinensis specimens were introduced not from the initial natural area (China South-Central), but from the collection of Berlin Botanical Garden (Botanischer Garten Berlin-Dahlem) where they could spontaneously be pollinated with some other Corylus spp. The advantages of our new hazelnut cultivars: 'Sofiyivsky 1'; "Sofiyivsky 2"; and 'Sofiyivsky 15', which have been included in the State register of plant varieties suitable for dissemination in Ukraine since 2019, testify to the effectiveness of hazelnut breeding for anthropoadaptability.