José Manuel Alonso Segura

• PhD
• Researcher at Agrifood Research and Technology Centre of Aragon

Almond (Prunus amygdalus Batsch.) blooming date is determined by the temperatures during the dormancy period, from the onset of endodormancy to just before blooming. In this work we have developed a model, based on several years data, to estimate the mean transition date from endodormancy to ecodormancy in 44 almond cultivars covering the whole ran...

Pollen tube growth after selfing was studied in four almond (Prunus amygdalus Batsch) families derived from crosses between self-compatible 'Tuono' and self-incompatible 'Ferragnès' and 'Ferralise' in both directions, in order to ascertain the phenotypic expressions of the different genotypes. A differential expression of self-compatibility was obs...

The amount of the major macroelements required to produce a given crop has been determined for a set of 11 almond (Prunus amygdalus Batsch) cultivars growing in the Middle Ebro Valley (NE Spain). A wide diversity of nutrient exports was found among the different cultivars. Although the production of kernels is the main objective when growing almond...

Pistil and pollen behavior during self- and cross-pollinations in 10 inbred almond seedlings with self-compatible genotypes and self-incompatible phenotypes were studied. Pollen from these inbred seedlings was examined for the pollen tube growth in self and non-self styles, while pistils from these seedlings were tested for their ability to support...

Inbreeding depression has been observed in most fruit trees, negatively affecting the offspring of related parents. This problem is steadily increasing due to the repeated utilization of parents in breeding programmes. In almond, self-compatibility transmission from 'Tuono' to its offspring remains partially unexplained due to deviations from the e...

Como otros frutales de clima templado, el peral necesita acumular frío durante el reposo invernal para florecer y fructificar con normalidad. En este artículo se describen qué son las necesidades de frío, por qué son esenciales para la producción de peras y cómo los agricultores deben tener este factor en cuenta para optimizar sus cosechas.

Flowering in temperate fruit trees depends on the temperatures during the previous months; chill is required to overcome endodormancy, and then heat exposure is needed. These agroclimatic requirements are cultivar-specific and determine their adaptability to the growing area and their response to climate change. We aim to estimate the agroclimatic...

Flowering in temperate fruit trees depends on the temperatures during the previous months; chill is required to overcome endodormancy, and then heat exposure is needed. These agroclimatic requirements are cultivar-specific and determine their adaptability to the growing area and their response to climate change. We aim to estimate the agroclimatic...

Dormancy is an adaptive strategy in plants to survive under unfavorable climatic conditions during winter. In temperate regions, most fruit trees need exposure to a certain period of low temperatures to overcome endodormancy. After endodormancy release, exposure to warm temperatures is needed to flower (ecodormancy). Chilling and heat requirements...

En el marco de una fruticultura sostenible se debe optimizar el uso de recursos, en especial el agua y los fertilizantes. En este estudio se evaluó la influencia de cuatro volúmenes de riego combinados con tres dosis de abonado nitrogenado sobre la respuesta vegeto–productiva y la calidad del fruto de melocotonero de Calanda (Aragón) durante cinco...

The Spanish Pear Germplasm Collection located at the CITA (Centro deInvestigación y Tecnología Agroalimentaria de Aragón, Zaragoza, Spain), holds 340accessions of Pyrus communis and 9 accessions of Pyrus pyrifolia. It includescommercial and traditional cultivars, and also Spanish sources. This collection hasalready been morphologically characterize...

A set of 34 landraces and local accessions and 39 international reference cultivarsfrom the Spanish Pear Germplasm Bank in Zaragoza (Spain) was agro-morphologicallycharacterized based on 50 Bioversity International and UPOV descriptors (24quantitative and 26 qualitative) in order to evaluate the agro-morphological variabilityof the Spanish germplas...

Shell-cracking load was measured in a sample of 54 almond cultivars, most of them from the autochthonous germplasm of Majorca (Spain), through a compression test. The shell-cracking load ranged from 58 N in ‘Nonpareil’ to 1415 N in ‘Alzina’, showing the large variability of shell hardness in almond nuts, distributed in 21 mean groups. The results c...

The peach of the designation of origin ‘Calanda’ that is much appreciated in the Spanish market for its high fruit quality, is produced from a few very late ripening traditional cultivars. We characterized the organoleptic, nutritional and post-harvest quality of the ‘Calanda’ cultivars ‘Calante’ and ‘Calprebor’ following different harvest dates. T...

Oil content, percentage of the different fatty acids and concentration on the three main tocopherol homologs were determined for the almonds of 23 cultivars of Majorca. All these parameters showed great variability, with a range of 47.40-56.78% of dry matter for oil, of 58.65-78.44% of total oil for oleic acid, of 12.01-29.40% for linoleic acid, of...

Almond is the most important nut species worldwide and almond kernels show the highest levels of tocopherols among all nuts. In almond, tocopherols not only play a substantial role as a healthy food for human consumption, but also in protecting lipids against oxidation and, thus, lengthening the storage time of almond kernels. The main tocopherol h...

Blooming time is an essential trait in almond cultivars, mainly because of the occurrence of frosts during bloom and early fruit development, when the flowers and the young fruits are very sensitive to freezing temperatures. Traditional almond growing has been mostly restricted to coastal regions where the risk of frosts was minimal or nil, but at...

The almond (Prunus amygdalus Batsch) breeding program of the Centro de Investigaci ón y Tecnología Agroalimentaria de Aragón (CITA) of Aragón aims to develop new self-compatible and late-blooming cultivars to solve the main problem detected in Spanish almond growing, its low productivity, due to the occurrence of frosts at blooming time or later an...

Self-incompatible Prunus species show a gametophytic self-incompatibility system, but self-compatibility is an interesting horticultural trait in these fruit tree species. Self-compatibility has recently attracted a particular attention since molecular approaches have been applied to the elucidation of the interacting pollen–pistil mechanism and to...

The presence of two phenotypic expressions of the Sf allele in almond has raised the question of their possible interaction. As a consequence, several seedlings with homozygous SfSf genotype were obtained in order to combine the two forms of the Sf allele in the same genotype: the active form (Sfa) inducing self-incompatibility, and the inactive fo...

Some degree of deficit irrigation is normally applied to orchards in semi-arid environments in order to reduce unwanted vegetative growth and to increase water productivity. In this study the effect of three irrigation treatments on the yield and quality of the fruit production was evaluated during five consecutive years (2008–2012) in a commercial...

European breeding programs are hampered by the low intraspecific genetic diversity, which is due to the self-compatibility of this homozygous species along with the low number of genotypes introduced and thus used for breeding. In 2009, four research institutions which carried out peach breeding programs in Aragon, Catalonia, Valencia and Murcia, s...

Allelic peculiarities of the S locus of the almond cultivars from Majorca.— The examination of the allelic diversity of the locus S in ten almond cultivars from Majorca has shown the presence of the Sf allele in four of them, as well as the presence of five new alleles non identified so far. Although the Sf allele has been described as responsible...

Although pollen tube growth has been an important criterion for self-compatibility evaluation in almond, there is not a clear-cut separation between positive and negative growth of pollen tubes in the different genotypes. The examination of pollen tube growth after selfing almond seedlings has allowed establishing different levels of compatibility,...

The evidence of almond self-pollination over almost a century has shown a high variability of fruit set, ranging from nil, indicating self-incompatibility, to very high, reaching the level of a normal crop and confirming self-compatibility in these genotypes. Most intermediate levels of fruit set were previously noted in the study identifying self-...

Pollen tube growth has been an important criterion for self-compatibility evaluation in almond, but there is not a clear-cut separation between positive and negative growth of pollen tubes in the different genotypes. Pollen tube growth was evaluated after selfing the seedlings from the cross G-4-3 (S f S 11)  'Marcona' (S 11 S 12) and the individu...

Plant material free of pests and diseas es is an essential requirement for obtaining high fruit quality in productive orchards. Unfortunately, the increase of genetic diversity has prevailed until now in most germplasm collections over the health status of the accessions. As a cons equence, most fruit tree germplasm collec- tions are infected with...

The search for sources of almond self-compatibility (SC) other than the cultivars from the Italian region of Puglia was undertaken in order to avoid the problems derived from inbreeding depression in some offspring. The S f allele, considered to confer SC, was identified by specific primers in several genotypes which later on were shown to be self-...

The almond is economically the most important tree nut in the world. Its production is limited to areas characterized by a Mediterranean climate, including regions in the Mediterranean countries, the Central Valley of California, the Middle East, Central Asia, the Himalayan slopes, and the Southern Hemisphere, including Chile, Argentina, South Afri...

Peach/nectarine is an important fruit tree crop in Europe and indeed worldwide. The registration of new cultivars, either for Plant Breeders' Rights or National Listing (PBR/NL) purposes in the European Union (EU), requires the completion of a distinctness, uniformity and stability (DUS) test in one of the EU Member States. The number of candidate...

Peach is the main stone fruit grown in Spain. The area devoted to this crop has increased slightly over the past 15 years, however its production has doubled in this period. Spain ranks fourth in the world production after China, Italy and the USA, producing 25% of the total peach crop in the European Union. Although peach production increases, con...

Gametophytic self-incompatibility (GSI) is a mechanism in flowering plants, to prevent inbreeding and promote outcrossing. GSI is under the control of a specific locus, known as the S-locus, which contains at least two genes, the RNase and the SFB. Active S-RNases in the style are essential for rejection of haploid pollen, when the pollen S-allele...

Self-compatibility (SC) is an interesting horticultural trait. Molecular approaches have been recently applied to the elucidation of the interacting pollen-pistil mechanism and to the identification of the genes involved in pistil-pollen recognition. Both mutations of the pistil S-RNases and the pollen SFBs have been reported to explain the changes...

The character of flat versus round fruit shape is controlled by a single gene (S/s) on chromosome 6 in peach [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch], with the flat fruit phenotype produced by the S/s heterozygous genotype. We used 16 simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers at the S/s region and physically mapped them in the peach sequence. Seven were mapped in t...

Although self-incompatibility (SI) in Rosaceae has been considered a single-locus qualitative trait, the evidence observed in different Prunus species has indicated the presence of modifier genes located outside the S locus. The almond progeny from the cross 'Vivot' × 'Blanquerna' has shown an unexpected self-incompatible behavior in most of the se...

The S f allele, in spite of having a single genotypic form, as shown by an identical amino-acid sequence, has shown to have two different phenotypic expressions, one active (S fa) producing an RNase, and another inactive (S fi) not producing an RNase and conferring self-compatibility. The full activity of the S fa allele has been observed in the cr...

Although global warming is increasing the medium air temperature over time, this negative temperature trend cannot be yet appreciated in some areas. Analysis of air temperatures in the Ebro Central Valley (Zaragoza, Spain) during the last 24 years shows drastic changes in temperature during winter and spring and high variability among years. Under...

Several approaches have been used to assess self-compatibility in almond, such as fruit set after self-pollination and bagging, pollen tube growth, and the more recent S f allele identification by molecular markers and gene sequencing. However, none of these methods has given fully reliable results and all show advantages and limitations. An active...

Gametophytic self-incompatibility (GSI) is a natural mechanism in flowering plants, including almond and other fruit tree species, to prevent inbreeding and promote outcrossing. It is typically under the control of a specific locus, known as the S-locus, which contains at least two genes. The first gene encodes glycoproteins with ribonuclease (S-RN...

The European project 068 AGRI GEN RES 870/2004 has as an aim the definition of the European almond core collection. The methodology for creation of any core collection has to define how best to select entries using complex and incomplete accession data, as well as how and when to revise these decisions over time. The acquisition of data has been ba...

Although self-compatibility is a genetically qualitative trait in almond, its expression has been shown to be variable and dependent on the genotype. Thus, pollen germination and pollen tube growth were studied in the progenies of two different crosses, involving the same self-compatible female parent, 'Mardía' (S 6 S f), and two self-incompatible...

The identity of the pistil (S-RNase) and the pollen (SFB protein) components of the S allele presumably conferring self-compatibility in almond (Sf) were confirmed in 'Ponç', a local Spanish almond cultivar. The 'Ponç' phenotype was confirmed as self-incompatible by several tests, including self pollen tube growth, fruit set after self-pollination,...

We evaluated the possibility of using the Pyrus communis OHxF clonal rootstocks instead of seedling rootstocks in the calcareous soils of the Ebro basin in Spain, with two important cultivars, 'Conference' and 'Doyenné du Comice', in comparison to the quinces (Cydonia oblonga) Adams and BA 29. With 'Conference', the highest cumulative yields after...

New interspecific hybrid Prunus rootstocks have been developed in Europe for use in calcareous soils and in replant conditions. A trial was set up in the Controlled Denomination " Peach of Calanda " growing area (NE Spain) to assess the performance of the late-ripening clingstone peach 'Jesca' on six different rootstocks, GF-677, Barrier, Cadaman-A...

The oil content and the percentage of the main fatty acids were determined in a set of 73 almond (Prunus amygdalus Batsch) cultivars from 10 different countries present at the almond germplasm collection of the Centro de Investigacion y Tecnolog ́i{dotless}a Agroalimentaria de Aragon, Spain (CITA). Wide variability was observed for oil content, ran...

Self-compatibility in Rosaceous fruit species is based on a single-locus qualitative trait. However, the evidence observed in different species has indicated the presence of modifier genes outside the S locus affecting the expression of self-compatibility/self-incompatibility. The study of a progeny obtained from the cross of the almond genotypes ‘...

A set of 94 peach cultivars including Spanish native peach and foreign commercial cultivars were analyzed using 15 SSR markers, selected for their high level of polymorphism. The number of alleles obtained varied from two to 11 with an average of 6.73 giving 185 different genotypes. All the cultivars showed a unique genetic profile, each one using...

Several approaches have been used in evaluating self-compatibility in almond. These include fruit set after self-pollination and bagging, pollen tube growth, and the more recent Sf allele identification by molecular markers and gene sequencing. However, none of these methods have given fully reliable results because they all show advantages and lim...

The S-allele characterisation of ‘Alzina’ and ‘Garondès’, two local almond cultivars from the island of Majorca, by a multidimensional approach has allowed the confirmation of the presence of the Sf-allele and the identification of a new allele not previously described in almond, S36. When these cultivars were phenotypically evaluated, both showed...

Almond growing in the Mediterranean area has been enduring sharp changes in the last decades. Whereas in some countries production has substantially decreased, in others a renewal of the concept of almond growing is taking place. In such a situation, new cultivars and rootstock are essential tools to achieve a success. Whereas in California 'Nonpar...

Almond (Prunus amygdalus (L.) Batsch) has been considered the earliest blooming fruit species, although it has become the species with the widest blooming range of all deciduous fruits after the release of the newly bred cultivars. Blooming of any cultivar takes place once its chill and heat requirements have been satisfied. Estimation of chill and...

The almond (Prunus amygdalus Batsch) breeding programme at the CITA de Aragón aims at the development of self-compatible cultivars in order to avoid all the problems related to cross-pollination, blooming if possible when the risks of late frosts are over. Previous releases have shown commercial levels of fruit set in growing conditions of single-c...

Self-compatibility has become the primary objective of most almond (Prunus amygdalus Batsch) breeding programmes in order to avoid the problems related to the gametophytic self-incompatibility (GSI) system present in almond, as in other species of the genus Prunus, belonging to the Rosaceae family. Self-incompatibility is a mechanism in flowering p...

Almond (Prunus amygdalus Batsch) kernel composition is a basic aspect for almond quality evaluation, but, with the exception of kernel taste, only nut and kernel physical traits have been considered so far in almond evaluation. Kernel bitterness, due to the presence of amygdalin, has been thoroughly studied from the physiological and genetic points...

Genetic diversity of the Spanish national almond (Prunus amygdalus Batsch) collection was characterized with 19 simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers selected because of their polymorphism in almond and other Prunus L. species. A total of 93 almond genotypes, including 63 Spanish cultivars from different growing regions, as well as some internationa...

Self-compatibility has become the primary objective of most almond (Prunus amygdalus Batsch) breeding programmes in order to avoid the problems related to the gametophytic self-incompatibility system present in almond. The progeny of the cross 'Vivot' (S(23)S(fa)) x 'Blanquerna' (S(8)S(fi)) was studied because both cultivars share the same S(f) all...

Peach (Prunus persica L. Batsch) is the main stone fruit grown in Spain. The area devoted to this crop has increased slightly (4%) over the past 15 years; however, its production has doubled in this period. Spain ranks fourth in world production after China, Italy and the USA, producing 25% of the total peach crop in the European Union. Six regions...

Additional index words. self-incompatibility, S haplotype, S-RNase, SFB . Most of the elf-compatible (SC) cultivars of almond [Prunus dulcis (Mill.) D.A. . syn. P. amygdalus Batsch] have the Sf haplotype. In this study, we cloned and the S locus region of the Sf haplotype of SC 'Lauranne'. The relative orientation of SFBf and Sf-RNase and the physi...

Almond growing in the Mediterranean area has been enduring sharp changes in the last decades. Whereas in some countries, such as Italy, production has substantially decreased, in others, such as Spain, a renewal of almond growing is taking place. In such a situation, new cultivars and rootstock are essential tools to achieve success. Whereas in Cal...

Almond (Prunus amygdalus Batsch) kernel composition is a basic aspect for almond quality evaluation, but some physical traits of the nut and the kernel must also be considered in a breeding programme. Although the physical traits do not affect the organoleptic characteristics of the almond kernel, they are very important for the processing industry...

Almond (Prunus amygdalus Batsch) has been considered the earliest blooming fruit species, although it has become the species with the widest blooming range of all deciduous fruits after the release of the newly bred cultivars. Blooming of any cultivar takes place once its chill and heat requirements have been satisfied. Estimation of chill and heat...

Peach fruits from the population "Amarillos Tardíos de Calanda" are characterized by their very late ripening of fruits of large size, nonmelting flesh, high quality, sweetness, and characteristic uniform cream yellow colour. The paper bagged production of this peach is traditional in the area protected by the Designation of Origin "Melocotón de Ca...

Almond has a gametophytic self-incompatibility system as do most other fruit tree species in the genus Prunus. Although almond cultivars are largely self-incompatible, several self-compatible cultivars exist. The S f haplotype found in 'Tuono' has been used as a source for self-compatibility in many almond-breeding programs. DNA and protein markers...

During the late 80s a prospection of clingstone and flat peaches was carried out in order to widen the CITA germplasm collection. Special attention was paid to the samples from the Ebro Middle Valley and to white fleshed clingstone peaches. As a consequence of the evaluation of this germplasm, two genotypes were selected in 1997 – 'Montaced', a whi...

The almond (Prunus amygdalus Batsch) breeding programme at the CITA de Aragón aims at the development of self-compatible cultivars in order to avoid all the problems related to cross-pollination, blooming, if possible, when the risks of late frosts are over. Previous releases have shown commercial levels of fruit set in growing conditions of single...

The peach species is the most important stone fruit grown in Spain. The acreage devoted to this crop has increased lightly in the last 15 years, however the production has been doubled in this period as a consequence of the use of drip irrigation and introduction of new varieties and more efficient rootstocks. The range of varieties in Spain is ver...

Challenges and perspectives of new almond cultivars and rootstocks for a sustainable production Almond growing in the Mediterranean area has been enduring sharp changes in the last decades. Whereas in some countries, such as Italy, production has substantially decreased, in others, such as Spain, a renewal of almond growing is taking place. In such...

Plant material of peach, situation in Spain The peach species is the most important stone fruit grown in Spain. The acreage devoted to this crop has increased lightly in the last 15 years, however the production has been doubled in this period as a consequence of the use of drip irrigation and introduction of new varieties and more efficient rootst...

Mardía' is a new almond cultivar released because of its good agronomical traits and very late blooming time, 2 weeks later than 'Felisia', the latest blooming cultivar released so far. It is characterized by its slightly upright growth habit, early ripening, high and regular bloom density, autogamy (S 6 S f genotype), high fruit set, tolerance to...

Introduction Quality Characterization Sources of Variability Future Breeding Prospects Acknowledgments Literature Cited

Almond [Prunus amygdalus Batsch syn. Prunus dulcis Mill. (D.A. Webb)] has a gametophytic self-incompatibility system (GSI). The GSI is haplotype-specific and controlled by a multi-allelic S-locus that codes for RNases involved in pollen rejection in a specific manner. The different S-alleles can be used for molecular identification and characterisa...