杏吧原创

GIANT strawberries could be coming to a supermarket near you by the turn
of the century. The strawberries, which are almost the size of pears, are being
developed in East Malling, Kent, by Horticulture Research International, a
government-funded research institute.

Already, says Richard Simpson, the institute鈥檚 head strawberry breeder,
whoppers around 6.5 centimetres across are on sale in California. Not to be
outdone, Simpson and his colleagues are now breeding a rival that will grow in
harsher, European climates. They have produced strawberries of equal girth to
the Californian ones.

The team at East Malling is relying on conventional breeding techniques
rather than genetic engineering to swell the fruit. By combining varieties from
Europe and North America that already produce big fruit, they have created still
larger berries.

The first strawberry growing on a plant is always the largest,
and size diminishes progressively as more flowering stems, or 鈥渢russes鈥�, grow on
the plant. 鈥淲hat we鈥檝e been able to develop through breeding is plants that have
fewer flowers than normal on each truss,鈥� says Simpson. As a result, more of the
plant鈥檚 resources are channelled into the fruit.

Commercial growers tried cultivating HRI鈥檚 giant strawberries for the first
this summer, but their shelf life was unacceptably short. Three other varieties
will be grown next year, and Simpson hopes that the first giants will be in the
shops within three or four years. He is also keen to nail the myth that big
strawberries have no taste. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a fallacy that there鈥檚 a connection between
size and flavour,鈥� he says. 鈥淵ou can get large ones that are very juicy and
迟补蝉迟测.鈥�