Apple breeding populations are valuable resources in genomic, physiological and genetic research. They help to reveal unique traits, assess characteristics of distantly related Malus species and generate useful materials for elucidating components of fruit quality and plant morphology. The germplasm resources within breeding programs allow the comparison of traits across a host of harvest times and genetic backgrounds. Using cultivars as both a maternal and paternal parent often yield differences in trait expression in these reciprocal crosses. This presentation will provide a “behind the scenes” look at unexpected traits found within progenies. The purpose of the cross will be provided, including parental attributes, followed by images of traits, which deviate from expectations. Variants in tree architecture, fruit cuticle attributes, fruit size and shape and postharvest attributes will be explained. Different types of genetic dwarfs will be described, along with variants for leaf morphology. This presentation seeks to foster further discussions on such resources within breeding programs and how best to leverage them for studying traits of importance.
