North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["Kieran &/or Donna" <holycow@frontiernet.net>]

From: Kieran &/or Donna [mailto:holycow@frontiernet.net] 
Sent: Thursday, February 03, 2011 3:41 PM
To: John R. Clark
Subject: Ka-Bluey blueberry

 

Dr. Clark,  

    Here we are on the Nafex group discussing the Ka-Bluey blueberry, and I 
can't find out if it's northern highbush, rabbiteye, or another one of your 
complex hybrids.  Can't find any kind of release notice, nada.  So don't keep 
me in suspense, there's still time to order it, along with your Ozark Blue, 
which kept dying on me.  Not your fault, Simmons sent it growing in a peat 
plug, and combined with clay soil in the drought and heat wave of 2005, I had 
to wrap my head about the idea of "delayed transplant shock" or more like 
something to do with soil types so different from each other that the 
democratic clay would take all the water from the peat plug.  Summit, which 
arrived bareroot from Finch's, did fine.  So far the northern and southern 
highbush have grown very slowly, and compared to the overbearing rabbiteyes 
they are very poor advertising for either in Tennessee without irrigation.  
Only the Summit plants look happy, so I'd like more of what ya'll have 
released.  Thanks.  

                Donna Hudson, Cookeville TN





Donna:
Happy to share info on this.


First, KaBluey is A-257,  selected here at UA (Clarksville AR to be exact) 
and it went the Gurney/Fields mail order route due to this seln not being of 
commercial quality and wanted to try to keep it in the home market. Mr 
Fackler, research director for the parent company Gardens Alive!, saw this 
and was interested. I would have discarded it eventually due to it was rather 
dark (commercial berries need to be lighter) and not sure if large enough (is 
medium in size but not really what is intended commercially). I thought only 
use was as a parent. Since public releases here are tough to try to direct to 
the home market (someone not knowing  this and plant a whole bunch and get 
burned is always a concern - cant communicate to everyone that might buy a UA 
variety as you well know) and he thought they could market and that seemed 
better than throwing it away. Thus it did not go the formal release and 
public route. It just was not suited in my opinion for that and the Univ went 
another path. 

 

I think I would classify it as a southern highbush type. It has in its 
background mostly highbush (V.corymbosum) and some V darrowi (the lower chill 
source for shb types) plus some what was once called V atrococcum (which 
Arlen Draper used a lot as a parent due to its strong plants and Phytophthora 
resistance; I think the taxonomists have lumped this species with corymbosum 
now). I cant really estimate easily the percentages, but maybe  1/8 darrowi 
maybe? It has in its background Bluecrop, Ashworth, Earliblue of HB 
background plus selections from other programs with the other species 
including one FL seln where the darrowi comes in.

 

It is a real strong plant here, one of best I have seen, but the material 
from V atrococcum tended to be that way. Tho this species was often a source 
of dark berries, it also had a unique flavor that I called peach-like. Some 
don't agree. Dr Draper laughed at me when I called it that when we selected 
back in the late 1980s. He did not pick that flavor up; but I am a peach 
breeder also, so cant I get away with that? That is part of what got Mr 
Fackler's attention. It is crisp usually too, another unique trait.  And, a 
strong plant. It has had some bud kill at times at Clarksville but don't 
think ever lost a crop; this due to swelling in the spring and a late freeze. 
This is common on shb types here.

 

I suggest you only try - not commercial-like planting. And get Ozarkblue 
again if you can. It is still a good one  if you can get the culture and 
plants right. Good luck and thanks for your interest! 

John R. Clark, University Professor

Dept. of Horticulture

316 Plant Science

University of Arkansas

Fayetteville, AR 72701