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Morphologic variation in the USDA/ARS rhubarb germplasm collection

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 July 2009

Alberto Pantoja  and
Joseph C. Kuhl
Alberto Pantoja*
Affiliation:
United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Subarctic Agricultural Research Unit, 362 O'Neill Building, Fairbanks, AK99775-7200, USA
Joseph C. Kuhl
Affiliation:
United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Subarctic Agricultural Research Unit, 533 E. Fireweed Avenue, Palmer, AK99645-6629, USA
*
*Corresponding author. E-mail: alberto.pantoja@ars.usda.gov
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Abstract

Rhubarb includes approximately 60 species in the genus Rheum. It has been utilized for thousands of years for medicinal purposes, but only recently identified for its culinary use. In the mid 1700s, edible petioles were discovered on seedlings from rhubarb species. Hundreds of cultivars have since been identified for a wide range of uses from tarts to wine. Unfortunately, propagation by seed and irregular naming has resulted in a plethora of similarly named cultivars and multitude of phenotypes. Fifteen morphological characters were evaluated to differentiate rhubarb cultivars in the USDA, ARS Rheum collection in Palmer, Alaska. Two years of morphological data, focusing on horticultural characteristics indicated variation between the years. To improve cultivar resolution, the results suggest using 1 year's data instead of combining data from different years. The mean °Brix observed was 3.8, with a range from 2.2 to 6.1. Flesh colour and basal skin colour were poorly correlated (R2 = 0.462); overall skin colour was more red at the base than in the middle of the petiole. Rhubarb character categories, in particular petiole number and petiole base thickness, need to be modified to better anticipate the range of expected values, and thereby contribute improved reproducibility and reliability to separate cultivars based on morphological characters.

Keywords

culinarycultivarsdescriptorsmorphologicR. rhabarbarumR. xhybridumRheumrhubarb
Type
Research Article
Information
Plant Genetic Resources , Volume 8 , Issue 1 , April 2010 , pp. 35 - 41
Copyright
Copyright © NIAB 2009

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