INIA Ágata™
(SGN 48.3 cv.)
Attributes
- No-chill, green plug transplant
- Excellent disease tolerance
- Very early fruit onset with long season production
- Firm berries with outstanding transportability
- Large to very large, uniform, conical to round fruit
- Glossy dark-red exterior color
- Red to light-red interior color
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Fruit Characteristics
The INIA Ágata™ brand SGN48.3 strawberry variety is a short-day cultivar developed by the Instituto Nacional de Investigacion Agropecuaria (INIA) of Uruguay. It was selected in 2008 and trialed in an environment of intense disease pressure of Salto, Uruguay.
Both a complex of soil borne organisms and powdery mildew plague the Salto production community. Through the 2012-2015 seasons, the INIA Ágata™ brand SGN48.3 strawberry variety consistently outperformed other commercial cultivars in terms of disease tolerance, early yields, uniformity and fruit quality.
The cultivar produces a high percentage of uniformly well-shaped, marketable strawberries. The large to very large berries have a beautiful round-conical appearance, an appealing, shiny, deep-dark red external color and a light red interior color. The fruit is very firm which facilitates handling and transport. The berries ship and arrive well in the Salto fruit industry despite the absence of extensive cold chain infrastructure.
Participants in consumer taste panels rated the INIA Ágata™ brand SGN48.3 strawberry variety favorably with medium-high soluble solids and high acidity.
Plant Characteristics
The INIA Ágata™ brand SGN48.3 strawberry variety is characterized by its rusticity and disease tolerance. The plants have a semi-erect growth habit with medium vigor. The foliage has a healthy, dark-green color. Although a strong nursery plant, the variety produces few runners in the fruiting field.
Nursery and Field Production
The INIA Ágata™ brand SGN48.3 strawberry variety was selected in a no-chill, green plug plant system targeting early market placements. Production begins approximately 6 weeks following transplant. The cultivar provides early fruit onset in the fall to winter months and retains its high overall productivity until the end of spring (May to December in the Southern Hemisphere). It has adapted well to protected, tunnel culture. Yields in trials averaged between 31 to 40 tons/ha over the compact, four-month season in Salto, Uruguay.
Disease and Pest Resistance
The soil borne fungal organisms to which the INIA Ágata™ brand SGN48.3 strawberry variety was exposed in trialing were: Neopestalotiopsis clavispora, Cylindrocarpon sp., Rhizoctonia sp., Macrophonina phaseolina, Fusarium sp., Phytopthora sp. and Pythium sp. It stood out over other cultivars and selections in these trials for its impressive tolerance to these fungal pathogens. Soils in the selection trials were not fumigated prior to planting.
The IINIA Ágata™ brand SGN48.3 strawberry variety shows strong tolerance to powdery mildew (Sphaerotheca macularis), moderately susceptible to botrytis fruit rot (botrytis cinerea), and intermediate susceptibility to two spotted spider mite (Tetranychus urticae) and thrips (Caleothrips phaseoli).
*Characteristics may vary depending on weather conditions, day length, soil type and location.