"The super millionaire fruits of the Alma Mater": this is how Corriere della Sera headlined years ago when announcing the results obtained by researchers from the Department of Agri-food Sciences and Technologies of the University of Bologna on the cherry tree genetic improvement project: the seven Sweet® sisters, the new varieties named after the children or loved ones of their inventors.
A team led by Stefano Lugli who, starting from old indigenous varieties, the famous Duroni di Vignola, bearers of valuable traits such as sweetness, texture and aroma, has been able to combine these virtues with others, such as beauty, size and productivity, taking them from varieties of American origin.
Below, the report by Bettina Riedel, variety manager of UNIBO, presented at the seminar on cherry variety innovation at Macfrut 2023. Precisely at Macfrut, ten years ago, the Sweet® varieties made their debut winning, among others, the Oscar prize for innovation.
24 Jun 2024
Nutrient analysis in leaves is fundamental to modern agriculture, allowing growers to assess the nutritional status of orchards and plan targeted fertilisation interventions. This tool is crucial for ensuring high quality fruit.
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As part of the Cherry Day, which took place on August 28 and 29 in Plottier (Neuquén), Chilean specialists demonstrated knowledge and experience related to the global cherry business.
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In stone fruit, auxins, gibberellins, cytokinins and ABA regulate fruit set, cell division and early fruit growth. The Prunus review explains how hormonal balance influences yield, fruit size, early fruit drop and harvest quality, highlighting its value for orchards.
10 Sep 2026
Drought and high temperatures cut the cherry harvest in the Czech Republic: at Mendel University in Brno, production fell by 16% and some fruit was up to half its usual size, making irrigation increasingly crucial for maintaining stable cherry production in coming year.
