Author
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Fery, Richard |
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Submitted to: HortScience
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal Publication Acceptance Date: 3/4/2006 Publication Date: 5/9/2006 Citation: Fery, R.L. 2006. ‘Baby Cream’, a High-yielding, Early Maturity, Cream-type Southernpea with a Compact Plant Habit. HortScience. 41(3):839. Interpretive Summary: ‘White Acre’ is a cream-type southernpea cultivar that has long been grown for processing in the southern United States. It is the cultivar that is traditional grown to produce the raw product used to pack acre-type southernpeas. Although ‘White Acre’ is considered by many consumers and processors to be the standard for a cream-type pea, the cultivar is significantly later in maturity and has a much larger plant habit than most modern cream-type cultivars. About 16 years ago, researchers at the U.S. Vegetable Laboratory in Charleston, SC, initiated an effort to develop an early-maturity acre-type pea with a compact plant habit. These efforts have resulted in the 2005 release of the cultivar Baby Cream. The new cultivar has a compact, erect plant habit; it produces dry pods at Charleston,SC, in 63 to 74 days, which is 7 to 14 days earlier than ‘White Acre’. ‘Baby Cream’ is recommended for use by both market gardeners and home gardeners for the production of fresh-shell acre-type peas. It is also recommended for trail by commercial food processors as a replacement for ‘White Acre’. ‘Baby Cream’ is much earlier and much less bushy than ‘White Acre’; it should be more suitable for use in modern, high plant population cropping systems. Technical Abstract: The USDA has developed a new cream-type southernpea cultivar named ‘Baby Cream’. The new cultivar was developed from a cross between ‘White Acre’ and the breeding line US-432. Following the cross, intense selection pressure was applied in the F2 through F8 generations for earliness, small plant habit, and ‘White Acre’ seed characteristics. ‘Baby Cream’ originated as the bulk of an F8 field population grown in 1996. ‘Baby Cream’ is adapted for production throughout the southeastern United States, where it can be expected to produce excellent yields of high quality cream-type peas. ‘Baby Cream’ has a compact, erect plant habit. The new cultivar produces dry pods at Charleston, SC , in 63 to 74 days, which is 7 to 14 days earlier than ‘White Acre’. Typical fresh-shell stage pods are yellow in color, 15 cm long, slightly curved, exhibit only slight constrictions between peas, and contain 13 peas. Fresh peas are cream colored (similar to ‘White Acre’), kidney shaped, and weigh about 18 grams per 100 peas. ‘Baby Cream’ is recommended for use by both market gardeners and home gardeners for the production of fresh-shell, cream-type peas. It is also recommended for trial by commercial food processors as a replacement for ‘White Acre’. ‘Baby Cream’ is much earlier and much less bushy than ‘White Acre’; it should be more suitable for use in modern, high plant density cropping systems. |
