SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 1 2 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 3 Contents Authors ___________________________________________________________________________ 4 Introduction: Tips for Interpreting Vegetable Variety Performance ____________________________ 5 Alabama Trials Yellow and White Supersweet Corn Variety Trial Continues in Central Alabama _________________ 7 Cantaloupe Varieties Produce Larger Fruit This Year in Alabama _____________________________ 9 Summer Squash Trials Reveal No Differences in Total Yield in Alabama ______________________ 11 Strawberry Evaluation Yields Promising Cultivars for Central Alabama _______________________ 13 Tomato Varieties Resistant to Tomato Spotted Wilt Included in Alabama Trials ________________ 15 Seedless Watermelon Trial Exhibits High Yield and Good Quality for Alabama _________________ 17 Georgia Trials Evaluation of Grano Onion Varieties for Southeast Georgia _________________________________ 19 Vidalia Onion Variety Trial in Georgia, 2003-2004 ________________________________________ 21 Watermelon and Cantaloupe Variety Trials in Georgia, 2004 _______________________________ 23 Mississippi Trials New and Current Tomato Varieties Compete for Best Performers in Mississippi ________________ 27 Seed Sources for Alabama Trials _____________________________________________________ 32 Guidelines for Contributions to the Vegetable Variety Regional Bulletin Names of chemicals are mentioned only for describing the production practices used. This represents neither a recommendation nor an endorsement of these products. Information contained herein is available to all persons without regard to race, color, sex, or national origin. Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work in agriculture and home economics, Acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, and other related acts, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Alabama Cooperative Extension System (Alabama A&M University and Auburn University) offers educational programs, materials, and equal opportunity employment to all people without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, veteran status, or disability. 4 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION Authors Randy Akridge Superintendent Brewton Agricultural Research Unit (334) 867-3139 Ronnie Blackley County Extension Agent University of Georgia Toombs County Extension Courthouse Square Lyons, GA 30436 (912) 526-3101/(912) 526-1012 Tommy Bishop Social Science Research tob3@msstate.edu Robert Boozer Area Horticulturist Chilton Area Research and Extension Center (205) 646-4123 rboozer@aces.edu Robert Boland Public Service Assistant P.O. Box 275 Nahunta, GA 31553 George Boyhan Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist Georgia Cooperative Extension Sevice Statesboro, Georgia (912) 386-3442 Jason Burkett Superintendent E.V. Smith Research Center (334) 727-6159 Arnold Caylor Superintendent North Alabama Horticulture Research Center (256) 734-5820 Jeff Cook County Extension Agent Tattnall County Extension Office P.O. Box 580 Reidsville, GA 30453 Tony Dawkins Superintendent Sand Mountain Research and Extension Center (256) 528-7133 William Evans Assistant Research Professor Mississippi Truck Crop Branch Experiment Research Station wbe@ra.msstate.edu Darbie Granberry Professor and Extension Horticulturist Rural Development Center P.O. Box 1209 Tifton, GA 31793 (229) 386-3410 granber@uga.edu Randy Hill Research Station Superintendent 8163 Hwy 178 Lyons, GA 30436 Joe Kemble Associate Professor and Extension Vegetable Specialist Department of Horticulture Auburn University, AL (334) 844-3050 jkemble@aces.edu David Ingram Associate Professor Central MS Research and Extension Center davidi@ext.msstate.edu (601) 857-2284 Blake Layton Extension Professor Entomology and Plant Pathology blayton@entomology.msstate.edu (662) 325-2085 Victor Lee County Extension Director II Newton County Extension Service victorl@ext.msstate.edu (601) 635-2267 Andy Milling Pest management Technician Entomology and Plant Pathology andym@ext.msstate.edu (601) 635-3642 Thad Paulk Agricultural Research Assistant III Department of Horticulture Coastal Plain Experiment Station Tifton, GA 31793-5401 Jim Pitts Superintendent Chilton Area Research and Extension Center (205) 646-3028 Reid L. Torrence County Extension Coordinator Tattnall County Extension Office P.O. Box 58 Reidsville, GA 30453 Edgar Vinson Research Associate III Department of Horticulture Auburn University, AL (334) 844-8494 evinson@aces.edu Charles Waldrup County Extension Director IV Smith County Extension Service charlesw@ext.msstate.edu (601) 789-5572 SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 5 Introduction: Tips for Interpreting Vegetable Variety Performance Edgar Vinson and Joe Kemble The spring 2004 variety trials regional bulletin includes vegetable variety information from Auburn University, Mississippi State University, and the University of Georgia. By studying information in this report, growers, extension specialists, and seed companies will be able to select the best possible vegetable varieties. Although yield is a good indicator of varietal performance, other information must also be considered. The following information provides a few tips for interpreting the results in this report. Open pollinated or hybrid varieties In general, hybrids (also referred to as F1) are earlier and produce a more uniform crop. Often they have improved disease, pest, or virus tolerance/resistance. Hybrid varieties are often more expensive than open pollinated varieties (OP), and seeds cannot be collected from one crop to plant the next. Despite the advantages hybrids offer, OP are still often planted in Alabama. Selecting a hybrid variety is the first step toward earliness and quality. Yield potential Yields reported in variety trial results are extrapolated from small plots. Depending on the vegetable crop, plot sizes range between 100 to 500 square feet. Yields per acre are estimated by multiplying plot yields by corrective factors ranging from 100 to 1,000. Small errors are thus amplified, and estimated yields per acre may not be realistic. Therefore, locations cannot be compared by just looking at the range of yields actually reported. However, the relative differences in performance among varieties are realistic, and can be used to identify best-performing varieties. Statistical interpretation The coefficient of determination (R2), coefficient of variation (CV), and least significant difference (LSD, 5%) are reported for each test. These numbers are helpful in separating the differences due to small plots (sampling error) and true (but unknown) differences among entries. R2 ranges between 0 and 1. Values close to 1 suggest that the test was conducted under good conditions and most of the variability observed was mainly due to the effect of variety and replication. Random, uncontrolled errors were of lesser importance. CV is an expression of yield variability relative to yield mean. Low CVs are desirable (under 20%), but are not always achieved. There must be a minimum yield difference between two varieties before one can statistically conclude that one variety actually performs better than another. This is known as the least significant difference (LSD). When the difference in yield is less than the LSD value, one cannot conclude that there is any real difference between two varieties. For example, in the seedless watermelon trial presented in this issue conducted at the North Alabama Horticulture Research Center, ‘Millennium’ yielded 32,138 pounds per acre, while ‘Sun Ray’ and ‘Revolution’ yielded 26,474 and 21,109 pounds per acre, respectively. Since there was less than a 7,309 difference between ‘Millennium’ and ‘Sun Ray’, there is no statistical difference between these two varieties. However, the yield difference between ‘Millennium’ and ‘Revolution’ was 11,029, indicating that there is a real difference between these two varieties. From a practical point of view, producers should place the most importance on LSD values when interpreting results. Testing conditions AU vegetable variety trials are conducted under standard, recommended commercial production practices. If the cropping system to be used is different from that used in the trials, the results of the trials may not apply. Information on soil type (Table 1), planting dates, fertilizer rates, and spray schedules is provided to help producers compare their own practices to the standard one used in the trials, and make relevant adjustments. 6 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION Ratings of trials At each location, variety trials were rated on a 1 to 5 scale, based on weather conditions, fertilization, irrigation, pest pressure, and overall performance (Table 2). Results from trials with ratings of 2 and under are not reported. These numbers may be used to interpret differences in performance from location to location. The overall rating may be used to give more importance to the results of variety performance under good growing conditions. Where to get seeds Because seeds are alive, their performance and germination rate depends on how old they are, where and how they were collected, and how they have been handled and stored. It is always preferable to get certified seeds from a reputable source, such as the ones listed in Seed Sources for Alabama Trials (p. 32). Several factors other than yield have to be considered when choosing a vegetable variety from a variety trial report. The main factors are type, resistance and tolerance to diseases, earliness, and, of course, availability and cost of seeds. It is always better to try two to three varieties on a small scale before making a large planting of a single variety. Vegetable trials on the Web For more vegetable variety information be sure to visit the vegetable varieties Web page at www.aces.edu/department/com_veg/veg_trial/vegetabl.htm. This Web site describes variety types, explains the ratings system, and presents information about participating seed companies. THE T ABLE 1. SOIL TYPES Location AT THE LOCATIONS OF ALABAMA T RIALS Soil type Malbis fine sandy loam Benndale fine sandy loam Dothan sandy loam Forkland fine sandy loam Norfolk-orangeburg loamy sand Luvernue sandy loam Savannah loam Hartsells-Albertville fine sandy loam Wynnville fine sandy loam Water-holding capacity (in/in) 0.09 - 0.19 0.12 - 0.14 0.14 - 0.15 0.13 - 0.15 0.15 - 0.17 0.13 - 0.15 0.13 - 0.20 0.16 - 0.20 0.16 - 0.18 Gulf Coast Research and Extension Center (Fairhope) Brewton Agricultural Research Unit (Brewton) Wiregrass Research and Extension Center (Headland) Lower Coastal Plain Substation (Camden) E.V. Smith Research Center, Horticultural Unit (Shorter) Chilton Research and Extension Center (Clanton) Upper Coastal Plain Agricultural Research Center (Winfield) North Alabama Horticulture Research Center (Cullman) Sand Mountain Research and Extension Center (Crossville) TABLE 2. DESCRIPTION Rating 5 4 3 2 1 Weather Very Good Favorable Acceptable Adverse Destructive Fertilizer Very Good Good Acceptable Low Very Low OF RATINGS Pests None Light Tolerable Adverse Destructive Overall Excellent Good Acceptable Questionable Useless Irrigation Very Good Good Acceptable Low Insufficient SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 7 Yellow and White Supersweet Corn Trial Continues in Central Alabama Joe Kemble, Edgar Vinson, and Jason Burkett Yellow and white supersweet (sh2) sweet corn varieties were evaluated at E.V. Smith Research Center (EVSRC) in Shorter, Alabama (Tables 1 and 2). Single row plots 20 feet by 6 feet were established with a within row spacing of eight to ten inches creating a stand of approximately 26,000 plants per acre. To prevent cross pollenation, yellow and white sh2 corn types were separated by 300 feet. Corn varieties were planted on May 12. Soils were fertilized according to the recommendations of the Auburn University Soil Testing Laboratory. For current recommendations for pest and weed control in vegetable production in Alabama, consult your county extension agent online at http://www.aces.edu/counties/. Sweet corn varieties were harvested on July 16 and 19. Yield (Tables 3 and 4) and ear quality characteristics (Table 4) were determined. In the yellow supersweet corn category, ‘Envy’ and ‘Saturn’ produced significantly TABLE 1. RATINGS OF 2004 SWEET C ORN VARIETY TRIAL1 Location Weather Fertility Irrigation Pests Overall 1 EVSRC 5 5 5 3 4 See introduction for a description of rating scales. higher yields than all other varieties including the older more established variety ‘Primetime’. In the white supersweet category, ‘Extra Tender’ and the standard ‘Variety 8101’ produced yields that were significantly higher than the others. ‘Windham’ and ‘Millennium’ produced the lowest yields. TABLE 2. SEED SOURCE, T YPE, COLOR , Variety Seed source Color AND EARLINESS OF SELECTED SWEET C ORN VARIETIES Disease resistance tolerance1 Years evaluated Type Days to harvest 78 CR, NCLB, SBW 02-04 Boreal Novartis W sh 2 Envy Seedway Y sh 2 81 CR, NCLB, SBW,SCLB 02-04 Flagship Seedway W sh 2 84 NCLB, SBW 02-04 Millennium Seedway W sh 2 82 CR, NCLB, SBW 02-04 Prime Time Novartis Y sh 2 79 NCLB, SBW 97-99,02-04 Saturn Seedway Y sh 2 75 CR, NCLB, SBW, SCLB 04 Variety 6800 Abbott&Cobb Y sh 2 72 NCLB, SBW 02-04 Variety 8101 Abbott & Cobb W sh 2 81 NCLB, SBW 96,97,99,02-04 Vision Seiger Y *sh2 73 CR, SBW 04 White Saturn Seedway W sh 2 75 NCLB, SBW, CR 04 Windham Novartis W sh 2 79 CR, NCLB, SBW 02-04 Xtra Tender 173A Sieger Y *sh2 73 — 04 1 Disease resistance/tolerance: CR = Corn Rust; NCLB = Northern Corn Leaf Blight; SBW = Stewart’s Bacterial Wilt; SCLB = Southern Corn Leaf Blight. * = improved supersweet for better eating quality. — = no information available. 8 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION T ABLE 3. PERFORMANCE OF SELECTED WHITE AND YELLOW S UPERSWEET C ORN VARIETIES Variety Extra Tender Variety 8101 White Saturn Boreal Windham Millennium r2 CV lsd Envy Saturn Flagship Prime Time Variety 6800 Vision r2 CV LSD 1 Type 1 W W W W W W Yield lbs/ac 10,144 9,491 7,104 6,974 4,748 4,716 0.41 40 1,938 8,300 6,391 5,276 4,863 4,424 2,470 0.50 41 1,502 Ear number no/ac 17,243 16,063 13,068 14,066 8,258 8,531 0.42 36 6,958 14,641 11,616 9,166 9,257 8,349 5,203 0.44 40 5,894 Y Y Y Y Y Y Type: W = White, Y = Yellow. TABLE 4. QUALITY RATINGS OF SELECTED WHITE AND YELLOW SUPERSWEET CORN V ARIETIES Variety Variety 8101 Millennium Windham Extra Tender White Saturn Boreal r2 CV lsd Saturn SS 6800 Prime Time Flagship Vision Envy r2 CV Type 1 W W W W W W Quality rating2 12.50 11.88 11.63 10.88 10.88 10.13 0.40 11 1.8 Tip cover3 4.13 4.25 4.50 3.63 3.63 3.75 0.32 14 0.82 Ear tip fill3 4.25 3.75 3.88 3.63 3.50 3.50 0.40 11 0.63 Eye appeal3 4.13 3.88 4.33 3.63 3.75 3.75 0.30 9 0.71 Ear length in 8.3 8.7 8.3 9.1 7.8 7.6 0.40 12 1.10 Ear diameter in 1.5 1.4 1.4 1.7 1.5 1.4 0.70 5 0.11 12.83 4.17 4.17 4.50 6.8 1.2 12.75 4.25 4.25 4.25 14.5 1.7 12.38 3.88 4.00 4.50 8.0 1.2 12.25 4.63 3.88 3.75 8.4 1.2 12.25 4.25 4.00 4.00 3.6 0.7 10.83 4.50 3.67 4.00 8.8 1.6 0.30 0.30 0.11 0.53 0.40 0.30 10 13 16 8 53 16 LSD 2.33 1.04 1.15 0.68 8.18 1.0 1 Type: W = White, Y = Yellow. 2 Quality rating is the sum of tip cover, ear fill, and eye appeal ratings. 3 Tip cover, ear fill, and eye appeal ratings: 5=excellent; 4=good; 3=fair; 2=poor; 1=very poor. Y Y Y Y Y Y SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 9 Cantaloupe Varieties Produce Larger Fruit This Year in Alabama Joe Kemble, Edgar Vinson, and Jason Burkett A small melon trial was conducted at the E.V. Smith Research Center (EVSRC ) in Shorter, Alabama (Tables 1 and 2). Soils were fertilized according to the recommendations of the Auburn University Soil Testing Laboratory. For current recommendations for pest and weed control in vegetable production in Alabama, consult your county extension agent online at http://www.aces.edu/counties/. Cantaloupe varieties were direct-seeded on May 13 into 30 foot rows with six feet between rows and a within row spacing of 1.5 feet. Drip irrigation and black plastic mulch were used. Melons were harvested at the half slip stage of maturity (Table 3). Melons were harvested four times from July 15 through July 27 . Yields were high overall this year as compared to 2003. ‘Minerva’ produced the highest marketable yield but these yields were not significantly higher than the yield of ‘ACX 4757’, ‘Moneyloupe’ or ‘Odyssey’. Yield of the market standard ‘Athena’ was significantly lower than this group TABLE 1. RATINGS OF 2004 C ANTALOUPE VARIETY TRIAL1 Location Weather Fertility Irrigation Pests Overall 1 EVSRC 5 5 5 4 5 See introduction for a description of rating scales. of varieties. However, ‘Athena’ produced a higher total number of marketable fruit than all other varieties. This is attributed to its significantly lower individual fruit weight. For commercial cantaloupe production, individual fruit weight should be 4 to 6 pounds. Larger fruit are generally sold at road side markets. ‘Athena’ melons were slightly above the recommended commercial weight at 7.4 pounds. ‘Minerva’, which has a size range of 7 to 8 pounds, produced fruit with individual weights of 10.6 pounds. TABLE 2. S EED SOURCE, F RUIT CHARACTERISTICS, AND RELATIVE E ARLINESS OF S ELECTED C ANTALOUPE V ARIETIES Variety Type Seed source Rind aspect1 Flesh color 2 O O O O O O O O O Days to harvest —4 — 80 85 77 — — 77 80 Disease claims3 — — FW,PM, FW,PM FWPM — — FW,PM, — Years evaluated 03,04 02-04 94-04 96-01,03,04 01-04 02-04 02-04 03,04 98,99,03,04 ACX 4757 F1 Abbott & Cobb E Aphrodite (RML 8793) F1 Seedway/Novartis E Athena* F1 Seedway/Novartis E Eclipse F1 Seminis E Minerva (RML 6969) F1 Seedway/Novartis E Moneyloupe (ACX 3908) F1 Abbott & Cobb E Odyssey F1 Sunseeds E **PCX 221* F1 Willhite E Vienna F1 Seminis E 1 Rind aspect: E= Eastern. 2 Flesh Color: O = Orange. 3 Disease claims: FW = Fusarium Wilt; PM = Powdery Mildew. 4 — = not found; from seed catalogues. * = not sensitive to sulfur; ** = not commercially available. 10 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION Sweetness was measured at harvest using a handheld refractometer. Cantaloupes with soluble solids reading below 100 Brix do not taste sweet. ‘Athena’ and ‘Aphrodite’ (a larger version of ‘Athena’) had the highest brix reading at 10.4 and 10.9, respectively. These two varieties also had a small internal cavity. Fruit with smaller cavities have fewer seeds and a larger area of edible flesh. Others varieties with small internal cavities were ‘Moneyloupe’ and ‘ACX 4757’. TABLE 3. YIELD Variety Minerva ACX 4757 Odyssey Moneyloupe Athena Vienna Aphrodite PXC 221 Eclipse r2 CV OF S ELECTED EASTERN C ANTALOUPE VARIETIES Marketable fruits no/ac 5,627 5,445 6,050 4,780 6,111 5,143 3,751 5,385 4,598 0.37 20 1,540 Cull weight lbs 2,468 2,056 5,094 • 1,473 4,368 2,554 3,070 3,312 0.80 9 2,471 Individual fruit wt. lbs 10.6 9.7 8.1 9.9 7.4 8.8 10.7 7.4 8.4 0.31 69 1.13 Soluble solids brix • 9.9 9.9 9.3 10.4 7.9 10.9 9.6 10.3 0.70 7 2.9 Marketable yield lbs/ac 58,788 52,643 49,287 45,569 45,218 44,838 40,153 39,889 38,508 0.38 20 LSD 13,200 • = data not available. SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 11 Summer Squash Trials Reveal No Differences in Total Yield in Alabama Joe Kemble, Edgar Vinson, Randy Akridge, and Tony Dawkins A summer squash variety trial was conducted at the Brewton Agricultural Research Unit (BARU) in Brewton and at the Sand Mountain Research and Extension Center (SMREC) in Crossville, Alabama (Tables 1 and 2). Soils were fertilized according to the recommendations of the Auburn University Soil Testing Laboratory. For current recommendations for pest and weed control in vegetable production in Alabama, consult your county extension agent or go online to http://www.aces.edu/counties/. At both locations beds were formed and silver plastic mulch with drip irrigation was used. Squash varieties were direct seeded on May 14 at SMREC and June 3 at BARU. Beds were 20 feet long on five-foot centers at BARU and 20 feet long on six-foot centers at SMREC. At both locations there was a within row spacing of 1.5 feet. At BARU, fertilization consisted of weekly injections of calcium nitrate and potassium nitrate (alternating) at a rate of 5 pounds N per acre between June 17 and July 19. Various fungicides were applied weekly from June 25 through July 14. At SMREC, preplant fertilization consisted of 50 pounds N per acre as 5-10-15 on April 19. Fertilization consisted of weekly injections of 12 pounds N per acre as T ABLE 1. R ATINGS OF 2004 S UMMER SQUASH V ARIETY TRIALS1 Location Weather Fertility Irrigation Pests Overall 1 BARU 4 5 5 4 5 SMREC 5 5 5 5 5 See introduction for a description of rating scales. Variety 20-20-20 from June 2 through July 1. Potassium nitrate (at a rate of 6.5 pounds per acre per week ) was injected on June 18 through July 15. Weekly applications of fungicides were made between June 8 through June 25. Squash were harvested three times per week between July 6 through July 23 at BARU, and June 18 through July 14 at SMREC. Squash were graded as marketable and non-marketable according to the United Stated Standards for Grades of Summer Squash (U.S. Dept. Agr. G.P.O 1987-180-916:40730 AMS) (Table 3). At both locations, ‘Prelude II’ was among the top varieties along with ‘Gentry’ and ‘Sun Ray’. ‘Horn of Plenty’ and ‘Cougar’ consistently produced yields that were significantly lower than most other varieties. There TABLE 2. SEED SOURCE, FRUIT TYPE, AND RELATIVE EARLINESS were no differences among OF SELECTED SQUASH VARIETIES varieties at either location for total yield (Table 4). Type Seed source Days to Disease Years harvest claims1 evaluated Cougar* F1 Harris Moran — CMV, WMV, ZYMV 02,04 Destiny III F1 Seminis — MV, WMV, ZYMV 97-01,04 Fortune* F1 Novartis 39 — 99,04 Gentry F1 Novartis 43 — 95-99,02-04 Horn of Plenty F1 Hollar — — 98,02,04 Lioness F1 Harris Moran — CMV, WMV, ZYMV 04 Prelude II F1 Seminis 40 PM, WMV, ZYMV 97-01,03,04 Sunray* F1 Seedway — CMV, PM, WMV 03,04 1 Disease claims: PM = Powdery Mildew; CMV = Cucumber Mosaic Virus; ZYMV = Zucchini Yellow Mosaic Virus, WMV = Watermelon Mosaic Virus. 2 — = none; from seed catalogues. * Precocious variety. 12 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION T ABLE 3. E ARLY YIELD 1 OF SELECTED SUMMER SQUASH VARIETIES, 2004 Variety Early marketable yield lbs/ac TABLE 4. T OTAL PRODUCTION OF SELECTED SUMMER SQUASH VARIETIES , 2004 Variety Total marketable yield lbs/ac Individual fruit weight lbs Cull weight lbs/ac Sand Mountain Research and Extension Center Destiny III 16,798 Fortune 15,446 Gentry 14,965 Prelude II 14,720 Sunray 13,186 Lioness 12,623 Horn of Plenty 12,533 Cougar 11,144 r2 0.35 CV 20 LSD 4,030 Brewton Agricultural Research Unit Gentry 4,225 Lioness 3,212 Sun Ray 3,131 Prelude II 3,080 Fortune 2,352 Cougar 2,160 Horn of Plenty 2,059 Destiny III 2,009 r2 0.50 CV 36 LSD 1,553 1 Early yield consisted of the first three harvests. Sand Mountain Research and Extension Center Prelude II 46,718 0.39 448 Fortune 45,164 0.37 1,116 Destiny III 44,123 0.42 1,715 Cougar 43,614 0.40 871 Sun Ray 43,542 0.37 968 Gentry 43,088 0.40 1,997 Horn of Plenty 37,189 0.40 363 Lioness 31,799 0.55 2,332 r2 0.30 0. 51 0.40 CV 19 15 85 LSD 11,795 0.09 1,564 Brewton Agricultural Research Unit Gentry 6,224 0.23 — Prelude II 6,102 0.24 — Lioness 5,442 0.30 — Sun Ray 5,254 0.23 — Fortune 5,005 0.26 — Cougar 4,462 0.49 — Destiny III 4,174 0.23 — Horn of Plenty 3,391 0.21 — r2 0.30 0.30 CV 34 58 LSD 2,464 0.23 — = data not available SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 13 2002 Strawberry Evaluation Yields Promising Cultivars for Central Alabama Robert Boozer, Randy Akridge, and Jim Pitts In Alabama, like many other areas, plasticulture strawberry production began with the cultivar ‘Chandler’. In the past several years ‘Camarosa’ has increased in popularity, especially in the southern half of the state. Not only are different varieties available but also different plant types, such as fresh dug green leaf, fresh dug trimmed, and plug plants. These newer cultivars allow growers to diversify their plantings, which might provide more uniform volume of fruit during the season, reduce disease risk, and improve profit potential. In the fall of 2001, two locations were selected to evaluate five strawberry cultivars. At the Chilton Research and Extension Center, CREC, in central Alabama the study area was set up on a Bama silt loam soil. Varieties ‘Chandler’, ‘Camarosa’, ‘Gaviota’, ‘Aromas’, ‘Strawberry Festival’ (Canadian source, fresh dug) and ‘Chandler’ (California, trimmed) were planted. The second location was the Brewton Agriculture Research Unit, BARU, in south Alabama where each of the five cultivars were planted on a Benndale fine sandy loam. ‘Chandler’ trimmed plants were not included at BARU. Beds were 30 inches wide, six inches high, and on five-foot centers. At both location, methyl bromide:chloropicrin 67/33 was applied at 250 pounds per acre in row treatment, and drip irrigation and plastic mulch was laid using Kennco equipment. Bare-root plants were planted on staggered double rows at a spacing of 14 inches within row and 12 inches between rows. Planting dates at CREC were October 8 for ‘Chandler’, ‘Camarosa’, ‘Gaviota’; October 12 for ‘Chandler’ trimmed; and October 24 for ‘Strawberry Festival’. Planting dates at BARU were October 8 for ‘Chandler’, ‘Camarosa’, and ‘Gaviota’ and October 26 for ‘Aromas’ and ‘Strawberry Festival’. In central Alabama, at CREC, 500 pounds of 13-13-13 were broadcast prior to forming beds. Nitrogen injections of seven pounds N per acre began in February and continued through the middle of May. CREC total season fertilization consisted of 156, 65, and 65 pounds N, K2O, and P2O5 per acre, respectively. Fungicide applications were applied weekly starting in March and continued through May 15. In south Alabama, at BARU, one ton dolomitic limestone and 400 pounds 13-13-13 were applied per acre prior to forming beds. Additional N was injected during the season through the drip irrigation system. Potassium was injected twice as potassium nitrate for a total of 35 pounds additional K2O. Season total of N, P2O5, and K20, of 209, 52, and, 87 pounds per acre, respectively, were applied at BARU. Fungicide applications began in November and continued through early May. First harvest began on January 9 and ended on May 16 at BARU and began on April 12 and ended on May 17 at CREC. Fruit were harvested and divided into marketable and non-marketable categories and weighed. In addition, a 25-count marketable fruit sub-sample from each cultivar and plant type was weighed to determine average fruit weight (Table 1). Overall yields were higher in south Alabama than in central Alabama. The cultivars ‘Chandler’ and ‘Gaviota’ were highest yielding for CREC and BARU, respectively. Very little difference among yields was noticed for the other cultivars with the exception of ‘Aromas’ which was significantly lower than other cultivars at BARU. Comparisons of ‘Chandler’ and ‘Camarosa’, the industry standards, produced similar results at both locations. Some interesting results from new varieties emerged from this evaluation. The warmer climate in south Alabama favored ‘Gaviota’ and ‘Strawberry Festival’ over standard cultivars, and ‘Aromas’ appears to be better suited to the cooler climate experienced in central Alabama. In looking at plant types, ‘Chandler’ green top plants yielded higher than ‘Chandler’ trimmed plants at CREC. Total marketable yields, however, are not the only consideration to make in selection of a cultivar. Percent marketable fruit is a very important consideration to make in cultivar selection, especially for u-pick operations. Yield efficiency, disease pressure, and overall field sanitation are affected by percent marketable fruit. Newer varieties had higher percent marketable fruit at both locations over the ‘Chandler’ green top standard. Percent marketable fruit was generally highest for all cultivars at BARU compared to CREC likely due to climatic 14 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION differences in the two locaTABLE 1. S TRAWBERRY VARIETY EVALUATION tions. Trends at both locations were similar with the exMarketable Individual Non-Marketable Percent Yield Fruit Wt. Yield Marketable ception of ‘Camarosa’ which lbs/ac g lbs/ac performed similar to newer culBrewton Agricultural Research Unit 1 tivars at CREC. ‘Chandler’ 7,433 18.6 5,254 58.6 trimmed plants, while lower Aromas 9,978 20.2 12,625 44.1 yielding than ‘Chandler’ green Camarosa 10,134 17 12,404 45 top plants, had higher percent Chandler Gaviota 16,149 20.2 6,698 70.7 marketable fruit. This is likely Strawberry Festival 11,514 17.7 4,825 70.5 one of the reasons more straw- r2 0.84 0.66 0.88 berry plantings are moving CV 16.3 18.8 6.9 906 1.6 791 away from ‘Chandler’ green LSD Chilton Research and Extension Center 2 top plants. Cultivar diversification Aromas 8,750 16.9 9,761 47.3 8,632 17.5 9,439 47.8 can be used to reduce the Camarosa 10,009 17.1 13,181 43.2 sharp harvest peak often ex- Chandler 6,645 16.3 6,699 49.8 perienced with a mono-culti- Chandler (trim)* Gaviota 7,174 17.9 7,436 49.1 var planting. Total seasonal Strawberry Festival 6,892 16.2 7,375 48.2 harvests were divided into r2 0.51 0.44 0.62 early, mid, and late harvest CV 20 6 25 periods by approximately one LSD 1,006 1.5 1,416 third intervals for both loca- 1 All plants were fresh dug, green top. tions to evaluate potential for 2 All plants were fresh dug, California trimmed. diversified plantings (Table 2). Harvest period yields, TABLE 2. STRAWBERRY HARVEST PERIOD EVALUATION , were more consistent at CREC ——————————Harvest Period*—————————— than at BARU. The lack of Variety Early Mid Late Total strong peaks, especially dur————————Marketable Yield (lbs/ac)———————— ing the mid-harvest period at Brewton Agricultural Research Unit 1 CREC would not warrant maGaviota 4,901 8,392 2,856 16,149 jor consideration of harvest Camarosa 3,639 3,604 2,755 9,998 period yields based on this Chandler 3,140 4,911 2,082 10,133 evaluation. However, at StrwFest 2,592 6,806 2,116 11,514 1,073 5,383 977 7,433 BARU, the harvest period Aromas 2 0.73 0.76 0.72 0.84 yields for ‘Gaviota’, r 32.0 24.5 26.7 16.3 ‘Camarosa’, and ‘Chandler’ CV LSD 497 715 289 906 were higher in the early period Chilton Research and Extension Center 2 than ‘Strawberry Festival’ and Aromas 2,576 3,302 2,872 8,750 ‘Aromas’. Late season harCamarosa 2,238 3,155 3,239 8,632 vest period yields were low- Chandler 3,215 3,675 3,119 10,009 est for ‘Aromas’ at BARU as Chandler (trim) 1,420 2,414 2,811 6,645 was total marketable yield and Gaviota 2,263 2,826 2,086 7,174 2,250 2,455 2,167 6,872 does not offer a benefit in that Strawberry Festival 2 0.57 0.55 0.57 0.51 location. Based on harvest pe- r 28.7 21.0 20.2 20 riod yields at BARU, the vari- CV LSD 419 392 345 1,006 eties, ‘Camarosa’ and ‘Straw- 1 Harvests 1-9 (early), 10-18 (mid), 19-27 (late). berry Festival’ would compli- 2 Harvests 1-3 (early), 4-7 (mid), 8-11 (late). ment each other well. New varieties ‘Gaviota’ and ‘Strawberry Festival’ these varieties. Central Alabama growers, who have should be evaluated by growers in south Alabama as a moved more production from ‘Chandler’ over to substitute for standard varieties or in conjunction with ‘Camarosa’, need to take a look at ‘Aromas’. SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 15 Tomato Varieties Resistant to Tomato Spotted Wilt Included in Alabama Trials Joe Kemble, Edgar Vinson, Randy Akridge, and Arnold Caylor A spring tomato variety trial was conducted at the Brewton Agricultural Research Unit (BARU) in Brewton, Alabama, and the North Alabama Horticulture Research Center (NAHRC) in Cullman, Alabama (Tables 1 and 2). Six-week-old tomato transplants were established on June 17 at BARU and May 3 at NAHRC. At both locations tomato seedlings were transplanted into 20-foot long plots, at a within row spacing of 1.5 feet. Soils were fertilized according to the recommendations of the Auburn University Soil Testing Laboratory. For current recommendations for pest and weed control in vegetable production in Alabama, consult your county extension agent online at http://www.aces.edu/counties/. At BARU, 75 pounds of nitrogen per acre as ammonium nitrate was applied preplant. After planting, beds received weekly, alternate injections of calcium nitrate (at a rate of 10 pounds of nitrogen per acre) and potassium nitrate (at a rate of 20 pounds of nitrogen per acre) between June 17 and July 11. Pesticides were applied twice weekly from June 28 through August 11. At NAHRC, preplant fertilization consisted of 80 pounds per acre of N as ammonium nitrate. Fertilization TABLE 1. R ATINGS Location Weather Fertility Irrigation Pests Overall OF 2004 TOMATO VARIETY TRIALS 1 BARU 5 5 5 5 5 NAHRC 5 5 5 5 5 consisted of weekly injections of ammonium nitrate at a rate of 10 pounds of N per acre. Pesticides were applied weekly. Tomatoes were harvested, weighed, and graded weekly between August 1 and September 13 at BARU and July 16 through August 23 at NAHRC (Table 3). Grades and corresponding fruit diameters (D) of fresh market tomato were adapted from the Tomato Grader’s Guide (Circular ANR 643 from the Alabama Cooperative Extension System) and were Jumbo (D> 3.5 inch), extra-large (D>2.9 inch), large (D>2.5 inch) and medium (D>2.3 inch). Marketable yield was the sum of extra-large, large and medium grades (Table 3). TABLE 2. SEED S OURCE, FRUIT CHARACTERISTICS, AND RELATIVE E ARLINESS OF S ELECTED TOMATO V ARIETIES Variety Type1 Seed source Plant habit2 Fruit color Days to harvest Disease claims3 Years evaluated Amelia F1/FM Harris Moran Det Red —4 **FW,TSWV,VW 03,04 BHN 640 F1/FM BHN Det Red 75 **FW,TSWV,VW 03,04 Carolina Gold F1/FM Novartis Det Yellow 75 * FW,VW 99,03,04 Florida 47 F1/FM Seminis Det Red 75 ASC,FW,St,VW 97-99,02-04 Florida 91 F1/FM Seminis Det Red 72 ASC,FW,St,VW 02-04 Sebring F1/FM Novartis Det. Red 75 FCR,**FW,St,VW 04 Leila F1/FM Rogers Det. Red — VW, FW*, St 04 Mountain Crest F1/FM Sun Seeds Det. Red 75 *FW,VW 04 1 Type: F1 = Hybrid; FM = Fresh Market. 2 Plant habit: Det = Determinate. 3 Disease claims: FCR = Fusarium Crown Rot; FW = Fusarium Wilt; VW = Verticillium Wilt; ASC = Alternaria Stem Canker; St = Stemphylium (gray leaf spot); TSWV = Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus; * = Races 1 and 2; ** = Races 1, 2, and 3. 4 — = not available; from seed catalogues. 16 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION At BARU, ‘BHN 640’ and ‘Mountain Crest’ produced yields that were statistically similar to the market stan- dards ‘Florida 91’ and ‘Florida 47’. At NAHRC, ‘BHN 640’ had the highest yield though there were no differences among varieties overall in total marketable yield. T ABLE 3. PERFORMANCE OF SELECTED TOMATO V ARIETIES Variety Marketable yield1 lbs/ac 31,681 30,437 30,124 29,991 26,204 25,465 24,317 23,373 0.50 13 5,206 ——Extra large—— number yield no/ac lbs/ac 24,593 15,428 21,689 17,333 19,511 9,529 19,511 18,876 ——Large—— number yield no/ac lbs/ac ——Medium—— number yield nos/ac lbs/ac 2,700 6,324 3,619 5,443 3,103 5,151 2,155 1,882 Cull lbs/ac 7,863 5,284 4,769 5,730 8,367 4,150 5,951 5,097 Individual fruit wt. lbs 0.56 0.47 0.51 0.48 0.50 0.44 0.55 0.53 BHN 640 Mountain Crest Florida 91 Florida 47 Carolina Gold Leila Amelia Sebring r2 CV LSD Brewton Agricultural Research Unit 17,450 23,686 11,531 8,168 9,709 30,674 14,403 19,602 14,154 26,862 12,350 10,981 11,014 29,585 13,534 16,426 12,631 23,414 10,470 9,166 6,058 32,398 14,256 16,335 13,496 18,604 8,666 6,443 12,301 19,330 9,189 5,990 0.70 22 3,823 Center 36,542 35,816 34,667 46,646 31,702 29,766 34,848 31,884 38,115 North Alabama Horticulture Research BHN 640 44,068 3,751 2,742 19,542 9,884 Leila 36,633 9,196 7,140 24,019 12,517 Amelia 33,559 5,627 4,349 24,321 13,563 Florida 47 32,832 4,235 3,222 17,001 8,960 Sebring 32,127 5,203 7,791 18,634 9,871 Mountain Crest 31,312 7,744 5,881 20,147 11,092 Mountain Fresh 31,182 6,232 4,609 19,360 9,996 Florida 91 27,995 5,445 4,240 18,997 9,172 Carolina Gold 27,734 3,025 2,174 16,456 8,580 r2 0.20 0.30 CV 38 73 LSD 18,275 4,935 1 Marketable yield is the sum of extra-large, large, and medium fruit. 31,442 16,975 15,647 20,650 14,465 14,340 16,578 14,584 16,981 8,416 6,565 7,008 10,304 7,389 7,593 8,249 8,454 8,218 0.70 0.53 0.52 0.48 0.57 0.54 0.52 0.49 0.48 SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 17 Seedless Watermelon Trial Exhibits High Yield and Good Quality for Alabama Joe Kemble, Edgar Vinson, and Arnold Caylor A seedless watermelon trial was conducted at the North Alabama Horticulture Research Center (NAHRC) in Cullman, Alabama (Tables 1 and 2). On April 30, four-week-old seedless watermelon transplants were set on silver plastic mulch. Seedless watermelons were transplanted rather than direct seeded because of the low germination rate of seedless watermelons. A seeded variety, ‘Companion’, was used as a pollinator. One pollinator was planted for every three seedless transplants to insure proper pollenation. Soils were fertilized according to the recommendations of the Auburn University Soil Testing Laboratory. For current recommendations for pest and weed control in vegetable production in Alabama, consult your county extension agent online at http://www.aces.edu/counties/. Ammonium nitrate was applied preplant. Fertilization consisted of weekly injections of six pounds of N per acre as calcium nitrate. Fungicides were applied starting one week after planting and continued through harvest. Watermelons were harvested on July 19 and were graded according to the Watermelon Grader’s Guide (Circular ANR-681 from the Alabama Cooperative Extension System) and marketable yield was determined. Two melons from each plot were used to measure soluble solids TABLE 1. R ATINGS OF 2004 W ATERMELON VARIETY TRIAL1 Location Weather Fertility Irrigation Pests Overall 1 NAHRC 5 5 5 5 5 See introduction for a description of rating scales. (sweetness), hollow heart, and rind thickness. A handheld refractometer was used to measure soluble solids. Similar to last year’s seedless watermelon trial, most varieties in the trial had marketable yields that were similar to the standard variety ‘Tri-X-313’. ‘Revolution’ had yields that were significantly lower than all other varieties. Watermelons with soluble solids reading below 100 Brix do not taste sweet. No variety had readings below 11.6. Rind thickness is an indicator of how well a watermelon can endure shipping. Rind thickness of ‘Tri-X-313’ was highest but was similar to all other varieties except ‘Liberty’, ‘Constitution’, and ‘Millennium’ which had the lowest rind thickness. Hollow heart occurs when a space or fissure develops at the center (heart) of the waterT ABLE 2. SEED S OURCE, FRUIT CHARACTERISTICS, AND RELATIVE EARLImelon. If a watermelon is NESS OF S ELECTED W ATERMELON V ARIETIES found to have hollow heart, the length of the fissure is Variety Seed Fruit Flesh Days to Disease Years then measured. Watermelsource shape color harvest claims1 evaluated ons with an excessive inciConstitution Seedway Blocky Red 87 ANT,FW 02-04 Freedom Sunseeds Blocky Red 87 FW* 02-04 dence of hollow heart are Liberty Sunseeds Oval Red 85 — 04 not desirable. When Millennium Harris Moran Round Red 78 — 04 present, hollow heart was Revolution Sunseeds Blocky Red 83 FW* 02-04 exhibited most notably in Sun Ray Sunseeds Round Yellow 87 — 04 ‘Freedom’ averaging 1.38 Triple Crown Seedway Oblong Red 85 — 04 inches in length. Overall the Tri-X-313 American Sun Oblong Red 85 — 96-98,03 incidence of hollow heart Melon 1 was minimal and there were Disease claims: ANT = Anthracnose; FW = Fusarium Wilt; *Race 1 only. — = not available from seed catalogs. no significant differences found among varieties. 18 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION TABLE 3. PERFORMANCE OF S ELECTED SEEDLESS WATERMELON V ARIETIES, NORTH ALABAMA RESEARCH AND EXTENSION CENTER Variety Millennium Tri-X-313 Triple Crown Constitution Freedom Liberty Sun Ray Revolution r2 CV LSD Marketable yield lbs/ac 32,138 31,096 30,643 29,341 27,904 27,717 26,474 21,109 0.40 18 7,309 Marketable fruits no/ac 2,110 1,762 1,653 1,914 1,631 1,588 1,784 1,131 0.43 21 519 Individual fruit weight lbs 15.37 17.96 18.49 15.34 17.49 17.67 14.85 18.82 0.60 9 2.15 Hollow heart in 0.13 0.13 0.38 0.50 1.38 0.38 0.88 0.25 0.21 177 1.3 Rind thickness in 1.19 2.25 1.41 1.25 1.50 1.31 1.38 1.38 0.30 43 0.92 Soluble solids brix 11.9 11.7 12.1 12.1 12.0 11.6 12.1 11.9 0.10 7 1.15 SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 19 Evaluation of Grano Onion Varieties for Southeast Georgia George E. Boyhan, Robert Boland, and Randy Hill Onions are an important part of the agriculture industry in southeast Georgia with the production of Vidalia onions. These mild short-day onions are produced as an overwintering crop within a specific region in southeast Georgia. Growers not within this region or “onion belt” are not allowed to use the Vidalia name. Because there are growers in south Georgia who are interested in producing short-day onions that are not currently grown in this region, other short-day onions have been proposed for production. While Vidalia onions are noted for their distinct slightly flattened shape that is unique to the Granex-type onion, these other short-day onions have a more rounded shape and are known as Grano-type onions. An experiment was conducted at the Vidalia Onion and Vegetable Research Center in Lyons, Georgia, to evaluate several of these Grano-type onions for production in south Georgia (Table 1). Previous experiments with these onions have shown they can be successfully grown in south Georgia, although they tend to mature later under TABLE 1. R ATINGS OF 2004 GRANO O NION VARIETY TRIAL1 Location Weather Fertility Irrigation Pests Overall Water-holding capacity (in/in) Soil type 1 Vidalia Onion and Vegetable Research Center 5 5 5 2-3 4 0.06-0.15 Tifton loamy sand See introduction for a description of rating scales. TABLE 2. SUMMARY Entry EX 07593001 Don Victor Nikita Sweet Magnolia Linda Vista Mata Hari Pumba (DPSX 1029) Chula Vista Safari Sweet Sunrise Texas Grano 1015Y Prowler Timon Arizona Sunset Sherita CV LSD 2 1 2 OF GRANO Company Seminis Nunhems (Sunseed) Nunhems (Sunseed) D. Palmer Seed Co. Seminis Nunhems (Sunseed) D. Palmer Seed Co. Seminis Nunhems (Sunseed) Nunhems (Sunseed) Seminis Nunhems (Sunseed) D. Palmer Seed Co. D. Palmer Seed Co. D. Palmer Seed Co. Multiple entry by 14.52 to convert to 50-lb bags/acre. Fisher’s Protected LSD (p<0.05) our production practices and consequently are more susceptible to late season bacterial diseases. Seed for this trial were sown in high-density plantings or plantbeds on September 14, 2003 and were transplanted to their final spacing on November 24, 2003. Beds prepared on six-foot centers were planted with transplants with a final spacing of 12 inches between rows and ONION YIELD , 2003-2004 5.5 inches in the row. Plot Field Yield1 Jumbos1 Mediums1 size was 10 feet of bed lbs/plot lbs/plot lbs/plot planted to the final spacing 93.9 62.0 0.4 in a randomized complete 91.9 76.6 0.2 block design with four repli77.1 47.8 0.4 cations. Weed, insect, and 75.4 31.4 0.6 disease control followed 75.3 38.4 0.5 University of Georgia Coop73.8 43.6 0.7 erative Extension Service 70.5 36.0 0.0 65.5 50.8 0.5 recommendations. Onions 65.0 54.3 1.2 were harvested on May 6 63.5 48.7 0.8 and 13, 2004 based on vari63.2 39.7 0.1 ety maturity. 60.7 53.4 2.2 Yield for the 15 variet60.4 48.1 1.3 ies in the trial is summarized 52.2 37.0 2.2 in Table 2. Two of the variet32.7 17.6 4.2 10% 23% 75% ies were red onions, ‘Mata 9.3 14.7 1.1 Hari’ and ‘Arizona Sunset’. 20 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION The remainder of the entries were yellow onions. The highest total yielding entry was EX 07593001 from Seminis with 93.9 pounds per plot, which differed significantly from ‘Nikita’. The highest yielding entry for jumbos was ‘Don Victor’ with 76.6 pounds per plot, which was significantly greater than ‘Safari’ with 54.3 pounds per plot. As with past experiments, Grano onions matured later than many of the Granex types grown in southeast Georgia. ‘Sherita’ in particular showed a high level of susceptibility to bacterial diseases that is reflected in low yields. For growers, who are not in the onion belt and wish to grow short-day onions, many of these varieties would be suitable. SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 21 Vidalia Onion Variety Trial in Georgia, 2003-2004 George E. Boyhan, Reid L. Torrance, Ronnie Blackley, Jeff Cook, Randy Hill, and Thad Paulk The Vidalia onion variety trial was held at the Vidalia Onion and Vegetable Research Center in Lyons, Georgia, Thirty-five varieties and two observational varieties were entered in the trial. Seed were sown on September 15, 2003 in a high-density planting (30 to 70 seed per linear foot) with a Monsem vacuum planter. Plants were lifted, had 50 percent of the tops removed, and were transplanted to their final spacing on November 17, 2003. Final spacing consisted of four rows set on raised beds formed on six-foot centers. Rows were 12 inches apart with plants set 5.5 inches apart in-row. Fertilization, insect, disease, and weed control followed University of Goergia's Cooperative Extension Service recommendations. Onions were irrigated as needed from a portable pipe overhead irrigation system. The experimental design was a randomized complete block design with four replications. Each experimental unit consisted of the particular variety planted on 35 feet of bed. Seedstems and doubles were recorded from the entire 35-foot bed on April 2, 2004. The six harvest dates included April 5, April 12, April 19, April 26, May 3, and May 10, 2004. Twenty-five feet of each plot were harvested on the dates indicated and left in the field for two days prior to clipping and bagging. Weights were recorded in the field after clipping and bagging. Onions harvested from April 5 to 19 were heat cured for 48 hours at 95oF. TABLE 1. R ATINGS OF 2004 V IDALIA ONION VARIETY TRIAL1 Location Weather Fertility Irrigation Pests Overall Water-holding capacity (in/in) Soil type 1 Vidalia Onion and Vegetable Research Center 5 5 5 3-4 5 0.06-0.15 Tifton loamy sand See introduction for a description of rating scales. Onions harvested from April 26 to May 10 were not subjected to heat curing to minimize problems with warm weather bacterial diseases. Harvested onions from each plot were graded into jumbo (> 3 inches) or medium (> 2 inches and < 3 inches) sizes and weighed. Finally, a ten bulb sample of jumbo onions from each experimental unit was combined and analyzed for pyruvate and soluble solids. ‘XON-303Y’ from Sakata Seed had the highest field weight at 1,235 50-pound bags per acre (Table 2). This was significantly greater than ‘Southern Honey’ or any variety with a lower field yield. The graded yield (jumbos T ABLE 2. SUMMARY OF GRANO ONION Y IELD, 2003-2004 Harvest date 5/10/04 5/10/04 5/10/04 5/10/04 4/12/04 5/3/04 4/19/04 5/10/04 5/10/04 Field Soluble weight Jumbos Mediums Pyruvate solids ————50-lb bags/ac——— um/gfs % 1235 787 10 4.5 7.7 1229 623 7 3.7 8.2 1206 758 8 3.0 8.1 1198 638 4 3.9 8.6 1174 1005 8 3.4 8.2 1164 785 10 4.3 9.2 1149 677 8 3.0 8.7 1101 485 8 3.7 8.4 1060 536 16 3.5 8.5 continued —Evaluated 4/2/04— Entry Company Doubles Seedstems XON-303Y Sakata 4 0 Exp. Yel. Granex 15082 Dessert Seed 4 10 SRO 1001 Sunseeds 1 11 Century Seminis 1 4 WI-3115 Wannamaker 20 3 XON-204Y Sakata 9 21 WI-609 Wannamaker 19 9 Exp. Yel. Granex 15094 Dessert Seed 1 21 DPS 1318 D. Palmer Seed 35 48 22 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION T ABLE 2, CONTINUED . SUMMARY OF GRANO O NION Y IELD, 2003-2004 Field Soluble weight Jumbos Mediums Pyruvate solids ————50-lb bags/ac——— um/gfs % 1043 426 26 4.3 8.6 981 417 31 3.4 8.9 979 329 6 4.2 9.0 976 426 10 3.8 8.5 929 683 10 3.6 9.0 923 374 22 3.4 9.1 918 414 5 4.1 8.1 917 356 8 3.4 7.6 916 767 16 4.0 10.0 908 704 39 3.8 8.4 899 781 26 4.2 10.0 878 683 21 3.8 8.3 858 778 22 3.6 8.5 857 566 21 4.3 8.9 810 342 15 3.5 8.9 804 742 27 3.6 8.5 801 443 14 3.6 8.6 800 391 19 4.5 8.7 754 339 42 734 371 12 4.6 8.8 702 391 19 4.0 7.8 699 391 21 4.3 8.1 678 419 19 4.1 9.3 631 463 184.3 10.2 564 313 8 4.2 10.1 433 199 22 3.5 8.1 15% 26% 53% 12% 5% 252 259 16 0.8 0.8 1096 1185 747 978 6 11 —Evaluated 4/2/04— Harvest Entry Company Doubles Seedstems date Ohoopee Sweet D. Palmer Seed 91 90 5/10/04 Southern Honey D. Palmer Seed 112 121 5/10/04 Pegasus Seminis 1 12 5/10/04 XON-202Y (99C 5092) Sakata 3 11 5/10/04 XON-203Y (01ZG 5034) Sakata 5 60 4/26/04 Rosali (Red) Bejo 44 29 5/10/04 Granex EM90 Clifton Seed 2 61 5/10/04 Exp. Yel. Granex 15085 Dessert Seed 2 109 5/10/04 SSC-1600 Shamrock 8 9 4/12/04 WI-129 Wannamaker 39 12 4/5/04 SSC 1535 Shamrock 8 7 4/12/04 606DY Shaddy 4 4 4/5/04 SSC 33076 Shamrock 3 3 4/5/04 Sapelo Sweet D. Palmer Seed 58 45 5/3/04 DPSX 1290 D. Palmer Seed 55 108 5/10/04 72766DY Shaddy 20 5 4/5/04 Cyclops Seminis 4 18 5/3/04 Mr Buck D. Palmer Seed 19 52 5/3/04 Georgia Boy D. Palmer Seed 99 91 5/3/04 Granex 33 Seminis 3 35 5/3/04 Exp. Yel. Granex 34140 Dessert Seed 2 55 5/10/04 Savannah Sweet Seminis 12 38 5/3/04 Granex Yellow PRR Seminis 5 38 5/3/04 SSC 6371 F1 (Sugar Belle) Shamrock 5 4 4/19/04 SSC 6372 F1 Shamrock 12 97 5/3/04 Sweet Vadilia Sunseeds 24 123 5/3/04 CV 32% 28% LSD* 5 8 Observational Tsubame Yae Nogei Co. 7 58 4/19/04 Nozomi Yae Nogei Co. 3 5 4/19/04 *Bonferonni adjustment for five comparisons.; Fisher's Protected LSD (p=0.05). and mediums) for ‘XON-303Y’ was only 65 percent of the field yield. The highest yielding variety for jumbo yields was ‘WI-3115’ with 1005 50-pound bags per acre, which was significantly better than 72766DY or any other variety with lower jumbo yields. ‘WI-3115’ had 86 percent of its field yield marketable. Seedstems were particularly problematic this year because of cool temperatures in March followed by warmer temperatures. This coupled with larger plants can trigger flowering. Although environmental factors are more important with seedstem formation, variety does play an important role. Doubles are also affected by environmental factors particularly adverse growing conditions that can affect the growing point resulting in more than one bulb. Seedstems ranged from 0 to 123 per plot with ‘Sweet Vidalia’ having the largest number of seedstems and ‘XON- 303Y’ having none. For doubles the range was 1 to 112 per plot. D. Palmer Seed had many of their entries with high numbers of doubles. ‘Pegasus’, ‘Century’, ‘Exp. Yel. Granex 15094’ and ‘SRO 1001’ all averaged 1 double per plot. Pyruvate analysis ranged from 3.0 to 4.6 umol/grams fresh weight (gfw) which is somewhat higher than in some years, but within the expected range for Vidalia onions. Soluble solids, which is the percent sugar, ranged from 7.6-10.2, which is higher than what is normally seen in onions. Overall the trials went very well this year with few problems. The number of seedstems and doubles was greater than average due to cool weather in March. Remember to exercise care when interpreting a single year’s data. SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 23 Watermelon and Cantaloupe Variety Trials in Georgia, 2004 George E. Boyhan, Darby Granberry, Randy Hill, and Thad Paulk Watermelon and cantaloupe variety trials were conducted at the Vidalia Onion and Vegetable Research Center near Reidsville, Georgia, in Toombs County. There were 36 entries in the watermelon trial and seven in the cantaloupe trial. Plants were produced in a local greenhouse, seeded on April 7, 2004, and transplanted to the field on May 18, 2004. Fields were prepared according to University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Service recommendations for watermelon and cantaloupe production. Seven hundred fifty pounds per acre of 10-10-10 fertilizer was preplant incorporated and an additional 750 pounds per acre of 1010-10 was applied approximately four weeks later just prior to vine coverage. Weed control followed University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Service recommendations; however, no disease or insect control measures were taken. The experiments were arranged as randomized complete block designs with four replications. Watermelons were planted with an in-row spacing of five feet and a between row spacing of six feet. Each plot (experimental unit) consisted of 10 plants. In the cantaloupe experiment, plants had a three-foot in-row spacing and a six-foot between-row spacing with 10 plants per plot. TABLE 1. RATINGS OF 2004 WATERMELON CANTELOUPE VARIETY TRIALS1 Location Weather Fertility Irrigation Pests Overall Water-holding capacity (in/in) Soil type 1 AND Vidalia Onion and Vegetable Research Center 5 5 5 3-4 4 0.06-0.15 Tifton loamy sand See introduction for a description of rating scales. Watermelons were harvested on July 8 to 9, 2004 and again on July 12, 2004. Cantaloupes were harvested on July 6 and 12, 2004. Data collected on the watermelon harvest included weight of each individual fruit, as well as the length, width, rind depth, and soluble solids (percent sugar) of two melons cut from each plot. In addition, the color was rated from 1 to 5 with 1 indicating excellent color and 5 indicating poor color. The color assessment attempted to quan- TABLE 2. WATERMELON VARIETY TRIAL, 2004 VIDALIA ONION AND VEGETABLE RESEARCH CENTER, LYONS, GEORGIA Variety Olé Wrigley Sweet Slice #7167 Jamboree WS Red Seedless MF Top Gun WX207 WX270 WX257 Company Willhite Seminis Willhite Abbott & Cobb Rogers Wannamaker Rogers Willhite Willhite Willhite Description1 Diploid Triploid Super Seedless™ Triploid Hybrid Triploid, round, avg 5-7 kg, firm flesh, less prone to hollow heart Hybrid Diploid Triploid (wilt resistant) Diploid Yield lbs/ac 54,987 53,822 53,150 46,569 46,076 44,573 43,749 41,313 40,141 39,995 ——Percent melons per weight class—— <10 lbs >10-<20 lbs >20-<30 lbs >30 lbs 6 14 18 14 3 52 2 2 27 9 72 78 81 85 70 48 62 72 72 81 21 8 1 1 25 0 35 26 1 9 1 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 continued 24 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION TABLE 2, CONTINUED. WATERMELON VARIETY TRIAL, 2004 VIDALIA ONION AND VEGETABLE RESEARCH CENTER, LYONS, GEORGIA Variety #800 (ACX 5413) RWT 8145 PS 80309020 Company Description1 Yield lbs/ac ——Percent melons per weight class—— <10 lbs >10-<20 lbs >20-<30 lbs >30 lbs 3 8 30 3 6 4 23 40 16 10 21 27 100 57 54 25 100 28 100 12 44 100 100 99 100 98 77 83 70 86 74 64 72 59 78 90 77 73 0 43 46 74 0 72 0 62 56 0 0 1 0 2 20 10 0 11 19 32 3 1 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 26 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Abbott & Cobb Summer Flavor® Hybrid 38,964 Rogers Hyb 3N 37,066 Seminis Triploid (Smaller 36,863 Cooperstown type) WX255 Willhite Diploid 36,768 WX266 Willhite Diploid 36,739 #810 (ACX 5408) Abbott & Cobb Summer Flavor® Hybrid 36,278 WS Yel Seedless F Wannamaker Triploid, yellow, high globe, 35,000 5-7 kg, high brix, good shipper Majestic (XP 4510759) Seminis Triploid 34,460 Mardi Gras Rogers Hybrid 34,191 Tri-X 313 Rogers Hyb 3N 33,665 #5244 Abbott & Cobb Summer Sweet® Triploid 31,211 Tri-X Palomar Rogers Hyb 3N 29,791 RWT 8149 Rogers Hyb 3N 29,516 WS Yel Seedless OS Wannamaker Triploid, yellow, globe shape, 28,303 4 kg, crisp bright yellow flesh WS Crimson 166 Wannamaker Seedless 27,127 Sweet Delight Rogers Hyb 3N Primed 26,430 RWT 8154 Rogers Hyb 3N 26,049 WS Crimson 144 Wannamaker Seedless 25,258 RWT 8162 Rogers Hyb 3N 24,619 WX28 Willhite Triploid (late) 24,379 Cha Cha Cha F1 Shamrock Seed Seedless 23,758 Co. RWT 8155 Rogers Hyb 3N 23,733 WS Orange Palm NQ Wannamaker F1 hybrid orange flesh palm, 17,243 2.5 kg Precious Petite Rogers Hyb 3N 15,471 WS Yel Palm PY Wannamaker F1 hybrid, yellow palm, 11,681 avg 2-3 kg, heat tolerant and resistant to cracking WS Crimson Palm Wannamaker Red, seeded palm, avg 2 kg 9,202 CV 43% LSD2 20,099 1 Description: 2N or diploid = with seeds; 3N or triploid = without seeds. 2 Fisher’s Protected LSD (p<0.05) tify the color quality without bias between dark red-, red-, and yellow-fleshed melons. The watermelon description in Table 2 is from the seed company’s description that was written on the seed packet or that came with the seed. The comments are our comments as noted during melon cutting. Occasionally, there may be discrepancies in these comments, which reflect differences among replications primarily due to variability in the variety. The yield results of the watermelon trial are summarized in Table 2. Yield ranged from 9,202 pounds per acre for ‘WS Crimson Palm’ to 54,987 pounds per acre for ‘Olé’. The lower yields generally occurred among the smaller fruited watermelons, several of which had 100 percent of their fruit in the below-10-pound class. The watermelon fruit characteristics are summarized in Table 3. Recently, several seed companies have introduced ‘palm’ or personal size watermelons. These watermelons are characterized by having weights averaging three to seven pounds. Many are seedless and differ from other small seedless watermelons in having a very thin rind. We tested several in this class from Wannamaker Seed Co. and Rogers Seed Co. There were both seeded and seedless as well as red- and yellow-fleshed varieties among the personal size watermelon tested. SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 25 TABLE 3. WATERMELON FRUIT CHARACTERISTICS, 2004 VIDALIA ONION AND VEGETABLE RESEARCH CENTER, LYONS, GEORGIA Variety Olé Wrigley Sweet Slice #7167 Jamboree WS Red Seedless MF Top Gun WX207 WX270 WX257 #800 (ACX 5413) RWT 8145 PS 80309020 WX255 WX266 #810 (ACX 5408) WS Yel Seedless F Majestic (XP 4510759) Mardi Gras Tri-X 313 #5244 Tri-X Palomar RWT 8149 WS Yel Seedless OS WS Crimson 166 Sweet Delight RWT 8154 WS Crimson 144 RWT 8162 WX28 Cha Cha Cha F1 RWT 8155 WS Orange Palm NQ Precious Petite WS Yel Palm PY WS Crimson Palm CV LSD 1 1 Flesh color 3.0 3.0 4.0 3.4 3.0 2.6 2.4 2.7 3.8 2.1 3.8 2.9 4.0 2.6 3.3 4.0 2.0 3.5 3.4 3.8 3.1 3.4 1.4 2.1 2.4 3.6 2.9 3.2 3.0 4.4 3.4 1.5 1.8 2.4 1.8 3.1 Fruit length in 13.6 10.6 10.7 11.0 15.1 8.9 11.2 17.6 11.6 13.8 14.8 12.4 10.9 13.2 16.3 14.4 10.0 11.1 13.2 10.7 10.9 9.9 7.6 9.4 8.8 11.0 7.4 9.0 6.9 14.4 10.3 7.3 8.6 7.3 7.5 6.9 Width in 8.4 7.8 8.6 8.3 7.8 8.1 9.3 7.8 7.7 6.5 8.0 7.7 8.0 7.7 7.4 8.1 8.8 8.1 7.5 7.8 8.0 8.6 6.7 8.0 7.9 8.3 6.3 8.5 6.2 7.4 8.1 6.2 6.1 6.7 6.4 6.0 Rind thickness in 0.9 0.9 1.1 1.2 1.0 1.0 0.8 0.9 0.9 0.9 1.1 1.0 1.2 0.9 0.9 1.1 0.9 1.1 1.0 1.0 1.1 1.0 0.5 0.9 0.8 0.9 0.5 0.9 0.5 1.1 1.3 0.5 0.4 0.5 0.5 0.4 9% 1.4 Soluble solids % 10.8 11.4 11.3 11.1 9.8 11.3 10.7 10.7 10.9 11.1 10.0 11.1 11.3 9.9 10.1 9.6 11.5 11.0 9.8 11.2 10.9 11.1 11.4 11.4 11.3 11.5 11.5 10.5 11.5 9.6 11.0 12.0 10.9 11.1 10.2 10.5 Comments Allsweet Blocky CS, Seedless Blocky, Seedless, CS, Yellow Seedless, Blocky CS Allsweet CS, Dark, Seedless, Small CS, Small, blocky J, Small CS, Red, Blocky, Allsweet, CS Allsweet, Jubilee, Seedless, Small CS Allsweet J small, Seedless, Blocky, CS, Variable Blocky CS, Seedless Allsweet Allsweet Allsweet CS, Yellow, Seedless Blocky CS, Seedless Allsweet Blocky, CS, Red, Seedless Seedless, Blocky CS CS, Dark Stripe, Red, Seedless Dark, Palm, Sugar Baby, Seedless, Red CS, Small, Yellow, Seedless CS Small, Seedless, not all, Palm, Dark Seedless, Pink, Blocky CS Palm, seedless, red CS Small Seedless Palm, Red, Yellow rind, Seedless Small Jubilee, Seedless, Not all Blocky CS Seedless Palm, seedless, red Palm, Yellow, Seeded Palm, red, seedless Yellow, Palm, Seeded, Breaks easily Palm, Seeded, Breaks easily Fisher’s Protected LSD (p<0.05) Only four entries had any melons in the larger-than30-pound class. These varieties only had 1 to 2 percent of their melons in this size. The majority of entries had melons in the 10-to-20-pound class. This reflects the demand in the commercial market for small- to medium-size melons. There continues to be a wide selection of watermelons from several different seed companies available in Georgia. No single variety dominates the market. Seeded and seedless watermelons, which vary in size and rind type, continue to be grown in Georgia. Personal melons have found a niche but are primarily being marketed directly by seed companies under contract production or exclusive release. This marketing method will garner higher profits for the seed companies but may also reflect the fact that personal melons tend to have lower yields making it difficult for growers to make money on a per pound basis with these melons. The results of the cantaloupe trial are summarized in Table 4. There were no statistically significant differences among the varieties in the trial. All were Athena type melons with the exception of WS-SP04, which we character- 26 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION ized as a honeydew. The seed company descriptor indicated it is a Sprite-type, but the fruit were larger than a typical sprite melon. No soluble sugars are reported this year for cantaloupe because the fruit were immature at harvest. In the past, southern blight has infected the fruit immediately upon ripening particularly since cantaloupe are grown on bare ground. To combat this problem, cantaloupe were harvested earlier than usual; however, the fruit never matured sufficiently postharvest to get an accurate reading of soluble sugars. Otherwise, the harvest reflects the potential for these varieties since the fruit had sized sufficiently. TABLE 4. CANTALOUPE VARIETY TRIAL, 2004 VIDALIA ONION AND VEGETABLE RESEARCH CENTER, LYONS, GEORGIA Variety Athena Aphrodite WS-SP04 PX 1461-1013 Jaipur (BS 4309397) Moneyloupe (ACX 3908) ACX 4757 CV LSD 1 1 Company Rogers Rogers Wannamaker Seminis Seminis Abbott & Cobb Abbott & Cobb Description Hybrid Hybrid Small specialty melon, 0.5-0.75 kg, ‘Sprite-type’, high sugar Hybrid Hybrid Hybrid Hybrid 72 maturity, fruit shape oval Yield no/ac 7,623 5,748 7,442 6,050 7,260 4,538 6,050 22% NS Yield lbs/ac 38,557 37,437 27,491 79,207 38,932 27,316 37,577 27% NS Length in 7.6 8.0 6.0 7.5 7.8 8.3 8.5 Weight in 6.1 6.8 5.8 6.3 6.2 6.5 6.4 Flesh depth in 1.9 1.7 1.8 2.3 1.9 2.1 2.0 Fisher’s Protected LSD (p<0.05) SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 27 New and Current Tomato Varieties Compete for Best Performers in Mississippi David Ingram, Bill Evans, Blake Layton, Andy Milling, Charles Waldrup, Tommy Bishop, and Victor Lee Tomatoes are one of the most popular crops grown by Mississippi’s vegetable producers as well as one of the most profitable on a per acre basis. Most of Mississippi’s tomato production occurs in the southern half of the state with the heaviest concentration in Smith, Jasper, Newton, and George Counties. In 2004, tomato cultivar trials were conducted at the Mississippi State University Truck Crops Branch Experiment Station in Crystal Springs (Copiah County) and at Myrick Farms (Smith County). Soil at the Smith County locations is a sandy loam, at Copiah a gravelly silt loam. The trials’ objectives included evaluation of cultivar productivity as well as disease incidence, particularly spotted wilt virus (TSWV). Four-week-old seedlings of nine commercially available and five experimental tomato varieties were planted as transplants on April 2, 2004 (Smith Co.) and April 3, 2004 (Copiah Co.) using typical plastic-mulch staked tomato culture with drip irrigation. Ten plants were planted per plot with in-row plant spacing of two feet and nine feet between rows. The experiment was set up as a randomized complete block with four replications. Fourteen entries were evaluated at Smith, nine at Copiah. Tomatoes were treated with standard tomato production practices for south Mississippi, including staking, tying, removal of suckers below the first fruit cluster, chemical and mechanical weed control, and integrated insect and disease management. Harvest began on June 14, 2004 (Smith) or June 15 (Copiah) and continued until July 9 (Smith) or July 15 (Copiah) for a total of eleven (Smith) and nine (Copiah) harvest dates. At each harvest date, total yield, marketable yield, and number of marketable fruit were collected. Insects and diseases were treated on an as needed basis. TSWV was observed in relatively high incidence at both locations and infected plants were mapped as to location in the Smith test to correlate incidence with reported TSWV resistance in some varieties being evaluated. From the data collected, mean marketable fruit weight was calculated as the marketable yield/number of marketable fruit. Cull yield was calculated as total yield-marketable yield. TABLE 1. RATINGS Location Weather Fertility Irrigation Pests Overall 1 OF 2004 T OMATO V ARIETY T RIAL1 Smith Co. 3 5 5 2 3 Copiah Co. 2 5 5 3 3 See introduction for a description of rating scales. Some oozing culls at Smith were not taken to the grading area and thus were not counted or weighed. It was thought that these averaged less than one fruit per plant and less than two or three per plot, and had little influence on conclusions to be drawn from the study. All data were subjected to analysis of variance at a probability level of P=0.05 using SAS for PC version 9.1. When significant variety effects were detected for the measured variables, means were separated using Fisher’s protected least significant difference test at P=0.05. An additional observational trial, without replication, was planted at Copiah Co. This trial was planted, managed, and harvested identically to the replicated trials. Data from this trial is presented without statistics. Trial conditions for both locations are presented in Table 1. Total yield at Copiah averaged a bit below that at Smith while marketable yields at Copiah were consistently lower than those at Smith (Table 2). At both locations, Amelia and Mountain Spring were among the top yielding entries. At Smith, the top entries also included ‘EX1408383’, ‘BHN 543’, and ‘XP140537R’. At Copiah, ‘Florida 47 R’, ‘Biltmore’, ‘Mountain Fresh’, and ‘BHN 543’ also produced high marketable yields. Average fruit size was in the range of 10 to 13 ounces per fruit, which is typical for the large fruited tomato varieties desired by growers and consumers. Average fruit size was slightly larger at Smith than Copiah for all cultivars. ‘Biltmore’ produced the largest average marketable fruit at both lo- 28 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION cations. ‘Florida 47R’, ‘Bush T ABLE 2. TOTAL T OMATO Y IELD AND FRUIT SIZE , 20041 Celebrity’ and ‘Mountain Fresh’ (all recently grown Total Marketable Marketable Mean Cull commercially in Smith Variety yield yield fruit fruit wt. yield lbs/plot lbs/plot no/plot oz/fruit lbs/plot County) were among the poorest yielding varieties at Smith County Smith. Amelia 196 143 189 12.1 53 Tables 3 and 4 present EX 01408383 193 133 173 12.4 60 yield data by harvest date. Mountain Spring 183 122 160 12.1 62 This data can be useful to BHN 543 187 118 164 11.6 69 171 118 162 11.7 53 select cultivars by relative XP1405037R 173 108 146 119 65 maturity date and concen- Tygress 164 107 156 10.9 57 tration of harvest. In general, SVR01409432 Biltmore 164 106 127 13.4 58 all varieties produced their Sebring 157 95 130 11.8 62 maximum total yield around SVR01409513 151 91 109 13.3 60 the first week or so of July Florida 47R 138 86 116 12.0 52 (Tables 3 and 4). Heavy rain- Bush Celebrity 170 85 122 11.1 85 142 80 97 13.2 61 fall during June and July is XP1417977 120 68 94 11.6 52 thought to have resulted in Mountain Fresh 2 30 27 37 0.7 19 poor pollination and fruit set LSD Copiah County early in the season at both Amelia 143 87 121 10.7 56 locations. ‘Amelia’, ‘MounMountain Spring 125 78 123 10.2 47 tain Spring’, ‘Tygress’ and Florida 47 142 76 118 10.6 66 ‘Bush Celebrity’ appeared Biltmore 132 75 96 12.5 57 to produce significant quan- Mountain Fresh 137 73 120 9.8 64 tities of marketable fruit ear- BHN 543 148 71 109 10.6 77 113 61 87 11.2 52 lier in the season as com- Sebring 113 61 92 10.7 51 pared to other varieties in Tygress 136 56 85 10.7 80 the trial. ‘Bush Celebrity’ Bush Celebrity LSD2 20.4 16.3 26.6 1.00 14.3 however, began to produce 1 Plots: 10 plants, 2 ft. in-row, 9 ft. between rows. lower quality fruit as the 2 Within columns, values different by more than the LSD value are statistically different. Best season progressed. performing group of entries within each column is presented in bold. Several entries showed fewer spotted wilt symptoms than others at Smith (Table 5). ‘Amelia’, ‘EX0108383’, location (Table 6). Several other entries in the observaand ‘XP1405037R’ had the fewest symptomatic plants. tional trial at Copiah performed as well as the best group About 30 to 40 percent of plants in plots of ‘Biltmore’, in the replicated trials. Three experimental lines grown in ‘Mountain Fresh’, ‘Florida 47R’, and ‘BHN 543’ showed replicate at Smith performed in the top half of entries in the symptoms of virus infection. ‘Amelia’, ‘Sebring’, ‘Tygress’, Copiah observational trial. The other two experimental lines and ‘Bush Celebrity’ had 15 percent infection or less. To- tested at Smith, ‘XP1417977’ and ‘XP1405037R’, were not mato spotted wilt virus did not affect one variety, grown at Copiah. ‘EX01408383’. Incidence of TSWV was not formally rated Thanks to Myrick Farms, Kelly Seed (Jack Stucky), at Copiah. Seminis (David Phillips), Chesmore Seed (Paul Koch), the In the observational trial at Copiah, ‘BHN 591’ had a Truck Crops Branch staff, Smith Co. MSU-ES (Gerri higher marketable yield than any replicated entry at that Sullivan), the Wm. White Special Projects Fund, and Mr. (dec.) and Mrs. Wm. White. SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 29 TABLE 3. YIELD (P OUNDS Variety Amelia EX 010408383 Mountain Spring BHN 543 XP1405037R Tygress SVR01409432 Biltmore Sebring SVR01409513 Florida 47R Bush Celebrity XP1417977 Mountain Fresh LSD2 PER PLOT) BY HARVEST D ATE, SMITH C O., 20041 6/28 26.9 5.8 11.2 14.1 4.9 17.8 13.5 7.8 6.8 3.0 7.4 12.9 7.4 7.8 6.5 6/30 34.1 20.2 16.4 23.9 6.4 24.4 21.3 17.8 5.3 9.7 14.7 17.6 18.0 15.5 9.1 7/2 24.6 25.7 26.1 22.1 16.6 20.6 21.5 25.9 17.2 13.9 21.7 16.7 17.3 20.2 NS 7/5 31.6 77.3 46.8 36.0 60.7 29.8 33.9 50.3 41.5 47.5 36.6 25.5 43.7 27.6 12.2 7/9 11.4 26.5 19.7 30.5 39.6 11.9 17.6 22.4 43.0 32.2 18.5 9.4 16.5 11.0 10.2 6/14 14.1 5.7 15.4 5.8 2.4 16.9 5.7 7.6 4.9 1.3 3.5 16.5 7.2 7.7 4.4 6/16 17.3 8.7 16.1 11.6 4.7 14.0 11.0 9.1 8.1 9.4 8.5 12.9 12.9 9.7 6.6 6/18 6.0 3.4 6.0 8.2 7.7 5.5 7.3 5.1 6.3 6.9 6.0 10.4 3.4 4.4 NS 6/21 Amelia EX 010408383 Mountain Spring BHN 543 XP1405037R Tygress SVR01409432 Biltmore Sebring SVR01409513 Florida 47R Bush Celebrity XP1417977 Mountain Fresh 13.5 13.2 4.6 24.0 27.8 14.7 15.0 3.3 4.1 5.8 2.5 5.2 16.8 21.0 47.9 17.8 11.3 12.5 4.6 9.3 13.1 16.4 27.8 9.4 4.3 8.9 4.8 11.4 19.1 14.8 16.0 14.7 1.5 3.8 6.1 4.4 5.5 12.0 40.7 22.6 15.2 11.5 3.9 11.8 13.4 10.9 11.6 4.7 4.8 8.0 3.1 9.9 15.5 12.9 18.9 9.6 6.3 4.4 1.8 5.0 14.5 17.9 32.2 14.5 3.8 6.0 4.9 4.7 3.9 13.5 24.1 22.3 1.3 6.2 3.2 2.6 7.6 8.1 28.4 17.5 2.4 5.8 2.2 6.3 10.3 15.8 21.9 10.5 11.0 5.6 5.4 9.0 9.6 8.4 9.1 1.5 5.6 6.6 2.1 4.9 13.8 9.7 23.2 6.7 5.7 6.2 2.7 6.1 10.9 13.1 11.8 4.2 LSD2 4.0 4.9 NS 4.7 7.0 NS 10.6 7.5 1 Plots: 10 plants, 2 ft. in-row, 9 ft. between rows. 2 Within columns, values different by more than the LSD value are statistically different. Best performing group of entries within each column is presented in bold. NS = no significant difference within column. 6/23 6/25 Total Yield 8.6 6.2 15.9 9.1 5.3 5.5 9.1 6.7 10.0 11.0 11.2 13.2 10.9 10.6 6.5 6.9 11.4 14.1 9.7 8.9 13.2 7.7 5.8 4.4 8.9 8.8 6.3 10.8 7.1 8.9 7.8 5.6 7.9 13.8 12.9 20.8 6.3 4.0 4.9 5.7 4.5 6.4 NS 4.2 6.4 Marketable Yield 7.3 6.0 13.6 5.1 3.4 3.6 4.9 4.2 8.1 6.8 6.9 10.7 8.3 8.7 4.1 5.6 8.9 10.9 6.4 6.8 10.6 4.1 3.4 2.0 4.3 4.9 2.9 5.3 3.7 7.0 3.4 3.7 4.1 5.4 6.8 12.9 3.7 2.4 1.5 3.2 1.6 2.7 NS 3.4 4.7 TABLE 4. YIELD (POUNDS Variety Amelia Mountain Spring Florida 47 Biltmore Mountain Fresh BHN 543 Sebring Tygress Bush Celebrity LSD2 PER PLOT) BY HARVEST DATE, COPIAH CO., 20041 6/28 Total Yield 28.7 18.3 15.6 12.1 13.6 22.6 10.7 11.7 16.9 8.3 7/01 18.8 20.6 26.7 28.5 21.8 18.5 15.6 14.0 14.7 6.1 7/06 27.6 32.1 46.2 37.7 30.0 25.3 22.1 19.7 28.7 12.2 7/09 16.1 9.3 17.6 19.8 23.2 21.5 19.4 12.2 13.6 NS 7/12 7/15 6/15 3.1 10.1 3.1 1.7 1.1 3.5 1.9 4.9 6.0 2.9 6/21 7.7 11.7 6.5 5.4 7.3 11.3 7.3 8.3 15.0 3.9 6/24 14.8 11.3 8.0 3.9 10.7 15.8 6.6 15.5 17.6 7.0 14.7 11.7 7.7 4.2 12.9 5.8 14.2 8.7 16.6 13.1 18.6 11.1 16.0 13.4 17.6 8.6 13.2 10.7 NS 4.3 continued 30 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION TABLE 4, Variety CONTINUED. YIELD (POUNDS PER PLOT) BY HARVEST DATE, C OPIAH C O ., 2004 1 6/24 6/28 7/01 7/06 7/09 7/12 7/15 Marketable Yield Amelia 2.1 4.5 12.3 22.8 14.2 15.3 5.9 5.9 3.7 Mountain Spring 5.8 6.5 8.1 13.8 13.5 18.1 5.0 4.2 3.0 Florida 47 2.1 3.8 4.5 10.1 17.2 22.8 6.5 5.9 3.8 Biltmore 0.4 2.3 1.8 6.1 20.0 22.8 11.6 6.0 4.3 Mountain Fresh 0.7 3.5 7.4 10.0 13.6 14.9 13.7 6.0 3.4 BHN 543 1.4 4.3 7.4 14.9 11.8 10.5 9.7 7.3 4.2 Sebring 1.2 5.4 3.8 6.2 10.9 13.9 8.5 7.7 3.6 Tygress 3.0 5.4 12.0 9.3 7.3 8.7 6.2 6.3 3.4 Bush Celebrity 3.0 6.8 11.0 8.2 7.9 7.6 6.3 4.0 1.7 LSD2 2.0 2.8 5.5 6.7 6.2 8.0 5.4 NS NS 1 Plots: 10 plants, 2 ft. in-row, 9 ft. between rows. 2 Within columns, values different by more than the LSD value are statistically different. Best performing group of entries within each column is presented in bold. NS = no significant difference within column. 6/15 6/21 TABLE 5. I NCIDENCE OF TOMATO SPOTTED WILT VIRUS, SMITH CO., 2004. 1 Incidence TSVW (%) 7.5 0.0 17.5 27.5 2.5 17.5 17.5 40.0 12.5 20.0 35.0 15.0 27.5 40.0 LSD2 16.5 1 Plots: 10 plants, 2 ft. in-row, 9 ft. between rows. 2 Within columns, values different by more than the LSD value are statistically different. The statistically least symptomatic group of entries within each column is presented in bold. Variety Amelia EX 0108383 Mountain Spring BHN 543 XP1405037R Tygress SVR01409432 Biltmore Sebring SVR01409513 Florida 47R Bush Celebrity XP1417977 Mountain Fresh SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 31 TABLE 6. TOTAL TOMATO YIELD AND F RUIT SIZE FROM O BSERVATIONAL TRIAL , C OPIAH C O ., 2004 1 Variety Total yield lbs/plot Marketable yield lbs/plot Marketable fruit no/plot Mean fruit wt. oz/fruit 10.1 9.4 9.9 10.4 11.0 9.4 10.6 8.6 10.1 8.8 10.9 9.3 11.0 10.2 9.8 9.3 8.2 10.2 10.2 10.9 13.1 11.0 9.8 10.6 Cull yield lbs/plot 67 52 81 52 57 52 54 57 43 32 45 51 101 30 68 70 50 86 63 53 74 120 75 106 BHN 591 155 88 138 Sun Leaper 132 81 138 Daybreak 163 81 131 BHN 640 127 76 116 Floralina 133 76 112 SVR 0140932 127 75 126 Spitfire 128 73 112 Pik-Red 130 73 136 Sun Gem 114 71 113 Palisade 102 69 127 SVR 01408426 112 68 100 BHN 586 115 65 11 EX 0148383 (Quincy) 165 65 93 Florida 91 88 58 90 JTO 99203 125 58 95 Mountain Pride 127 58 100 Bingo 107 57 111 BHN 444 141 56 87 Sunchief 113 50 78 Sun Master 102 49 72 Red Sun 122 48 59 Carnival 160 40 58 Big Beef 109 34 56 Empire 135 30 46 1 Plots: 10 plants, 2 ft. in-row, 9 ft. between rows. Single replication. 32 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION Seed Sources for Alabama Trials Seeds donated by the following: Sunseeds Richard Wojciak 12214 Lacewood Lane Wellington, Florida 33414-4983 Phone: (561) 791-9061 Fax: (561) 798-4915 Mobile: (561) 371-2023 E-mail: richard.wojciak@sunseeds.com Other seed sources: Abbott and Cobb, Inc. To order: (800)-345-SEED In TX: (800) 227-8177 Tech Rep: Russ Becham 4517 Tilman Bluff Road Valdosta, GA 31602 Fax: (912) 249-8135 BHN 1310 McGee Avenue Berkeley, CA 94703 Phone: (510) 526-4704 Email: mail@berkeleyhort.com Harris Moran P.O. Box 4938 Modesto, CA 95352 (209) 579-7333 (209) 527-8684 Harris Seeds To order: (800) 544-7938 P.O. Box 22960 60 Saginow Dr. Rochester, NY 14692-2960 Hollar To order: (719) 254-7411 P.O. Box 106 Rocky Ford, CO 81067-0106 Ph: (719) 254-7411 Fax: (719) 254-3539 Website: www.hollarseeds.com Johnny’s Select Seeds To order: (207) 437-4395 Tech. Rep: Steve Woodward 955 Benton Ave Winslow, ME 04901 Ph: (207) 861-3900 Email: info@johnnyseeds.com Rupp Seeds To order: (800) 700-1199 17919 County Road B Waseon, OH 43567 Sandoz Rogers/Novartis To order: (912) 560-1863 Seedway To order: (800) 952-7333 Tech. Rep: James J. Pullins 1225 Zeager Rd. Elizabethtown, PA 17022 Ph: (717) 367-1075 Fax: (717) 367-0387 E-mail: info@seedway.com Seminis Vegetable Seeds, Inc Tech Rep: Rusty Autry 2221 North Park Ave. Tifton GA 31796 Ph: (229) 386-0750 Siegers Seed Company 13031 Reflections Drive Holland, MI 49424 Fax: (616) 994-0333 Tifton Seed Distribution Center Tech. Rep: Van Lindsey Ph: (912) 382-1815 Willhite To order: (800) 828-1840 Tech Rep: Don Dobbs P.O. Box 23 Poolville, TX 76487 Fax: (817) 599-5843 SPRING 2004 COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE VARIETY TRIALS 33 Guidelines for Contributions to the Vegetable Variety Regional Bulletin Vegetable variety evaluation and selection is an essential part of production horticulture. The vegetable variety regional bulletin is intended to report results of variety trials conducted by research institutions in the Southeast in a timely manner. Its intended audience includes growers, research/extension personnel, and members of the seed industry. Timeliness and rapid turnaround are essential to better serve our audience. Hence, two bulletins are printed each year: one in November with results from spring crops, and another one in April with results from summer and fall crops. It is essential that trial results are available before variety decisions for the next growing season are made. Here are a few useful guidelines to speed up the publication process for the next regional bulletin (fall 2004). When: March 25, 2005 Deadline for fall 2004 variety trial report submissions. What: Results pertaining to variety evaluation in a broad sense. This includes field performance, quality evaluation, and disease resistance. Here are a few tips: • Follow the format used in the previous 13 regional bulletins. • Include author’s complete mailing address, e-mail address, and phone number. • Express yields on a per acre basis or in typical measures used for the crop (i.e., number of 40 pound bushels per acre). • Follow your own unit’s internal review process. Contributions will be edited, but not formally reviewed. How: Send a disk and hard copy to: Edgar Vinson or Joe Kemble Department of Horticulture 101 Funchess Hall Auburn University, AL 36849-5408 Or send e-mail to: vinsoed@auburn.edu, or kembljm@auburn.edu 34 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION 6 5 4 8 7 3 2 1 UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA 1. Vidalia Onion and Vegetable Research Center, Lyons, GA AUBURN UNIVERSITY 2. E.V. Smith Research Center, Shorter, AL 3. Brewton Agricultural Research Unit, Brewton, AL 4. Chilton Research and Extension Center, Clanton, AL 5. Sand Mountain Research and Extension Center, Crossville, AL 6. North Alabama Horticulture Research Center, Cullman, AL MISSISSIPPI STATE UNIVERSITY 7. Myrick Farms, Smith County, MS 8. Truck Crops Experiment Station, Crystal Springs, MS