ARS | Publication request: BLACK CURRANT CULTIVARS NEWLY RELEASED FROM THE U.S. NATIONAL QUARANTINE

Submitted to: Fruit Varieties Journal
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: March 10, 1999
Publication Date: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Eighteen black currant varieties and one jostaberry were released in December 1998 from the National Plant Germplasm Quarantine Office (NPGQ) in Beltsville, MD. These cultivars were received by the quarantine office between 1989 and 1993 from collaborators in Poland, The Russian Federation, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Foreign currant and gooseberry plants scannot enter the United States unless they are first tested for viruses an other disease agents by protocols determined by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service at the NPGQ. Limited quantities of plant material for research and evaluation are available from the Curator at the USDA-ARS, National Clonal Germplasm Repository in Corvallis, Oregon.

Technical Abstract: Eighteen black currant, Ribes nigrum L., and one jostaberry, R. x nidigrolaria Bauer, cultivars were released in December 1998 after testing for diseases at the U.S. National Plant Germplasm Quarantine Office (NPGQ) in Beltsville, Maryland. These cultivars were received at the quarantine office between 1989 and 1993 from collaborators in Poland, The Russian Federation, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Foreign Ribes from Europe are prohibited to enter the United States except when processed through this quarantine facility. NPGQ inspects incoming plant material for insect or mite infestation and tests for viruses and other disease agents using mechanical and graft inoculation of biological indicator plants. These 19 cultivars passed the rigorous Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) testing protocol and were released to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, National Clonal Germplasm Repository (NCGR) in Corvallis, Oregon, for long term preservation in their Ribes collection. Plant material can be requested for research and evaluation by contacting the Curator at the Corvallis Repository.