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Introduction: The strawberry industry in South Korea has witnessed a significant 65% growth over the past decade, surpassing other fruits and vegetables in production value. While sweetness and acidity are well-recognized flavor determinants, the role of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in defining the desirable flavor profiles of strawberries is also crucial. However, existing research has predominantly concentrated on a limited range of commercial cultivars, neglecting the broader spectrum of strawberry varieties. Methods: This study embarked on developing a comprehensive VOC database for a diverse array of strawberry cultivars sourced both domestically and internationally. A total of 61 different strawberry cultivars from Korea (45), the USA (7), Japan (8), and France (1) were analyzed for their VOC content using Tenax TA Thermo Desorption tubes and Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS). In addition to VOC profiling, heritability was assessed using one-way ANOVA to compare means among multiple groups, providing insights into the genetic basis of flavor differences. Results and discussion: The analysis identified 122 compounds categorized into esters, alcohols, terpenes, and lactones, with esters constituting the majority (46.5%) of total VOCs in Korean cultivars. 'Arihyang', 'Sunnyberry', and 'Kingsberry' exhibited the highest diversity of VOCs detected (97 types), whereas 'Seolhong' showed the highest overall concentration (57.5mg·kg-1 FW). Compared to the USA cultivars, which were abundant in γ-decalactone (a peach-like fruity aroma), most domestic cultivars lacked this compound. Notably, 'Misohyang' displayed a high γ-decalactone content, highlighting its potential as breeding germplasm to improve flavor in Korean strawberries. The findings underscore the importance of a comprehensive VOC analysis across different strawberry cultivars to understand flavor composition. The significant variation in VOC content among the cultivars examined opens avenues for targeted breeding strategies. By leveraging the distinct VOC profiles, particularly the presence of γ-decalactone, breeders can develop new strawberry varieties with enhanced flavor profiles, catering to consumer preferences for both domestic and international markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Natural farming, a recent agricultural innovation emphasizing minimal inputs, helps boost crop production. While strawberries are conventionally cultivated, their natural farming potential remains untapped. In this regard, an experiment was conducted to evaluate the influence of Subhash Palekar natural farming (SPNF) and conventional farming (CF) systems on the vegetative growth and yield performances of five different strawberry cultivars viz. Capri, Winter Star, Winter Dawn, Camarosa, and Nabila under field trials in the Doaba region of Punjab conditions. The experiment included ten treatments and was laid out in the factorial randomized block design employing five distinct strawberry cultivars (Capri, Winter Star, Winter Dawn, Camarosa, and Nabila) as factor I, and farming techniques - SPNF and CF - as factor II. The results confirmed the supremacy of CF for vegetative growth and SPNF system for yield and yield attributing characters. Under the CF, cultivar Capri greatly outgrew other cultivars in terms of increased plant height (5.60 and 12.10 cm) and plant spread (14.87 and 23.63 cm EW; 13.00 and 24.59 cm NS) at 45 and 90 DAP, respectively. Contrarily, under the same farming method, the cultivar Camarosa displayed larger numbers of trifoliate leaves (4.80 and 14.50 at 45 and 90 DAP, respectively), chlorophyll index (56.90 SPAD), leaf area (45.84 cm2), and stem girth (2.45 cm). However, cultivar Capri produced the maximum fruits per plant (26.14) and yield per plant (328.53 g), while cultivar Camarosa resulted in the maximum average berry weight (16.53 g) and the greater yield efficiency (0.77 kg/cm2) under the SPNF technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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In this article, the results of testing strawberry cultivars Ostara, Korona, Pineberry, Maxim (Gigantella), Dora and the standard Cambridge favourite are presented. The trial was established in May, 2015 in the Kostinbrod experimental field under field conditions (without mulching) in four replications at a planting scheme of 1.80 m/0.25 m. It covered a two-year period – 2016 and 2017. It was found that flowering occurred earliest in Ostara, latest in Cambridge favourite. Dora was the earliest maturing cultivar (mid-May). Varieties resistant to late spring frosts (Ostara, Korona, Dora, Cambridge favourite) predominate. The cultivars Korona and Ostara are well characterised by number of inflorescences and number of flowers per plant. The fruits are attractive, especially those of Pineberry, which are white to pale pink in colour. Korona has an excellent flavour, Dora and Maxim are very good. Dora's fruit is characterised by a strong aroma. The infestation rate of strawberry weevils /Rhynchites germanicus Hrbst., Anthonomus rubi/ is below the threshold of economic harm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To maintain a constant supply of fresh fruit from May to November, producers increase the area of strawberry cultivation under shelters and grow strawberries that repeat fruiting. An additional problem is the reduction of available pesticides caused by the recommendations of the European Green Deal. For these reasons, the authors undertook to compare cultivars to determine which had the best quality fruits and whichplant wasmost resistant to the most dangerous pests.The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of the method of plant protection on the health and quality of the fruit yield of three remontant strawberry cultivars grown in a soilless medium. This study evaluated fruit yield and fruit quality as well as the contribution of pathogens to yield losses. For this purpose, standard phytopathological methods were used to identify the causes of disease symptoms on the fruit. At the same time, laboratory tests were carried out on the quality of the harvested strawberries, i.e., firmness and acidity of the fruit, soluble solids content, and respiration rate. The applied protection methods had little effect on the marketable yield and fruit size but had a significant impact on reducing fruit losses caused by the most common diseases. The effectiveness of individual protection methods inreducing the incidence of the tested pathogens and the effect on fruit quality parameters depended on the cultivar and growing season. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Strawberry is one of the most popular fruits in the world because of its good organoleptic characteristics, as its aroma is a complex characteristic that significantly contributes to fruit quality. In the present work, we performed a comparative study of the differences in the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) contents and the enzymatic activity and gene expression of alcohol acyltransferases (AATs) in four strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa Duch.) cultivars ('Camarosa', 'Cristal', 'Monterey', and 'Portola'). In the four cultivars esters were the most important group among the observed VOCs; however in terms of differences in concentration, the 'Monterey' and 'Portola' cultivars showed the highest ester concentrations, while 'Cristal' showed the lowest, and 'Camarosa' showed an intermediate concentration. With respect to the mRNAs of the genes encoding two enzymes (SAAT and FaAAT2), we observed higher transcript levels in the 'Monterrey' and 'Portola' cultivars than in the other two cultivars ('Cristal' and 'Camarosa'). Finally, the results suggested a temporal relationship exists between total AAT activities, VOCs contents and mRNA gene expression, which could be valuable for future breeding activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Classification of fresh and processing strawberry cultivars is important to make the best utilization of different cultivars in processing. The aim of the study was to investigate whether support vector machine (SVM) and extreme learning machine (ELM) could assist the classification of 15 strawberry cultivars. Twenty-two characteristic indexes were analyzed, including not only appearance indexes but also nutritional indexes. RESULTS: The results showed that classification accuracies of 100% and 88.52% were obtained by using SVM and ELM with 3-fold cross validation, respectively. Moreover, seven characteristic variables extracted from 22 quality indexes by SVM could make it possible to determine the adaptability of a particular cultivar by measuring relatively small number of indexes. CONCLUSION: Both ELM and SVM models are feasible to identify fresh and processing cultivars. However, SVM showed better performance for its accuracy and simplicity, indicating that SVM would be a good choice for classification of strawberry cultivars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of planting distances on the development of root and crown rot diseases of strawberry in the transplanting nursery was studied in two successive seasons of 2015 and 2016. Three Super Elite mother plants of Festival, Florida and Sweet Charlie were tested. Seven Planting distances (0.6, 0.9, 1.2, 1.5, 1.8, 2.1, 2.4 m) were used between mother plants. The first three planting distances (0.6, 0.9, 1.2 m) were the standard distances used by strawberry growers in the commercial nurseries. The rest of planting distances (1.5, 1.8, 2.1, 2.4 m) represented the suggested modified distances. The obtained results showed a considerable amount of reduction (%) on root and crown rot diseases on the produced transplants of the modified planting distances. The modification of planting distances in strawberry nurseries could be used as one of banned methyl bromide alternatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was conducted in El Tahrir South Station, Ali Mubarak Farm, Horticulture Research Institute, Agriculture Research Center.,Cairo, Egypt at the winter seasons of 2012, 2013 and 2014. The main aim was to decide upon a morphological character in the juvenile stage of strawberry to be considered as a morphological marker; i.e., Breeding Program Selectable Marker (BPSM) - for expecting the production level in the breeding programs, instead of waiting for the whole growing season; to save time, money, land and labor efforts. Thirty eight characters were evaluated using eleven strawberry cultivars, to assess the important morphological differences among them. Results showed that there were some initial vegetative growth characters at the early stages of development in the nursery during the propagation of seedlings that might be relayed upon to determine the expected yield at an early stage, without delaying to the end of whole growing season. There were some clear and significant differences among all cultivars in most of the studied traits, which might make selection effective for such complicated character of total yield. Correlation results showed significant and desirable positive correlations between total yield and each nine of the morphological traits; i.e., leaf color of the upper side (0.35**), terminal leaflet length in relation to width (0.34**), number of stolons (0.04**), flower earliness (0.19*), corolla number (0.18*), flower position in relation to foliage (0.30**), flower diameter (0.24**), calyx size in relation to corolla (0.53**) and petals arrangements (0.29**). On the other hand, some significant negative correlations were detected between total yield and each of other nine traits. Significant differences and correlation among these traits suggests that, they could be taken into account when selecting for productivity improvement in strawberry breeding programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing demand of strawberry ( Fragaria × ananassa Duch) fruits is associated mainly with their sensorial characteristics and the content of antioxidant compounds. Nevertheless, the strawberry production has been hampered due to its sensitivity to abiotic stresses. Therefore, to understand the molecular mechanisms highlighting stress response is of great importance to enable genetic engineering approaches aiming to improve strawberry tolerance. However, the study of expression of genes in strawberry requires the use of suitable reference genes. In the present study, seven traditional and novel candidate reference genes were evaluated for transcript normalization in fruits of ten strawberry cultivars and two abiotic stresses, using RefFinder, which integrates the four major currently available software programs: geNorm, NormFinder, BestKeeper and the comparative delta-Ct method. The results indicate that the expression stability is dependent on the experimental conditions. The candidate reference gene DBP (DNA binding protein) was considered the most suitable to normalize expression data in samples of strawberry cultivars and under drought stress condition, and the candidate reference gene HISTH4 (histone H4) was the most stable under osmotic stresses and salt stress. The traditional genes GAPDH (glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase) and 18S (18S ribosomal RNA) were considered the most unstable genes in all conditions. The expression of phenylalanine ammonia lyase ( PAL ) and 9-cis epoxycarotenoid dioxygenase ( NCED1 ) genes were used to further confirm the validated candidate reference genes, showing that the use of an inappropriate reference gene may induce erroneous results. This study is the first survey on the stability of reference genes in strawberry cultivars and osmotic stresses and provides guidelines to obtain more accurate RT-qPCR results for future breeding efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]