'No other publication has this international range of expertise. In linking physiology, breeding, husbandry, plant health, nutrition and sustainability, it promises to be a benchmark reference for crop and food scientists, practitioners and students. A signal achievement by any measure.' (Emeritus Professor Silviero Sansavini, University of Bologna, Italy)
Originating in Central Asia, apples are one of the most important fruits globally and are grown in over 100 countries. Apple cultivation faces a number of challenges. Increasing global competition has put the focus on lowering costs whilst further improving sensory quality and shelf-life. There is a need to reduce inputs such as water, fertiliser and labour, both to save costs and reduce environmentally-damaging emissions and pollution. There is a continual battle with fungal, viral and bacterial diseases as well as insect pests. In the long term there is a need for new varieties able to withstand disease or more extreme conditions associated with climate change. This means preserving genetic variety and exploiting new molecular breeding techniques opened up by the sequencing of the apple genome in 2010.
Drawing on an international range of expertise, this collection focuses on ways of improving the cultivation of apples as a food crop at each step in the value chain, from breeding through to post-harvest storage. Volume 1 reviews research in apple physiology and breeding as well as diseases and pests and their management. Chapters in Part 1 start by discussing genetic diversity and the apple genome. They then review research on apple physiology and how this understanding can be applied to rootstock improvement and marker-assisted breeding. Part 2 summarises recent research on understanding pre- and postharvest fungal diseases, viruses, bacterial diseases and insect pests, as well as integrated disease management and the development of pest and disease-resistant varieties.
Achieving sustainable cultivation of apples Volume 1: Physiology, breeding, pests and diseases will be a standard reference for fruit and horticultural scientists in universities, government and other research centres and companies producing apples. It is accompanied by Volume 2 which reviews improvements in cultivation techniques.
Dr Kate Evans is Professor of Horticulture at the Tree Fruit Research and Extension Center at Washington State University, USA.
