"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.
20 Mar 2026
A study in Spain examines an evergrowing sweet cherry genotype unable to enter dormancy. The research highlights altered expression of DAM genes and offers new insights for genetic improvement and adaptation to climate change in temperate fruit crops.
03 Jan 2025
The ORP measures the oxidising capacity of water. A higher value indicates a greater capacity to destroy microorganisms. By lowering the pH, dissolved ozone becomes more effective as an oxidising agent. This increases the ORP and improves the effectiveness of the disinfectant.
06 Aug 2026
Trunkguard, the biological inoculant developed by INIA, targets wood-decay fungi in cherry, apple, blueberry and European hazelnut while activating natural plant defenses. Greenhouse trials had promising results, particularly in cherry plants under controlled conditions.
06 Aug 2026
A Tasmanian field trial is examining how rain covers affect orchard microclimate, light and cherry quality, helping growers manage hotter, drier summers, extreme rainfall and fruit cracking while protecting yields, premium production and the fruit’s commercial value now.
