Seven Lemon Selections Under Study

In a recent webinar, Tracy Kahn provided details about seven lemon selections undergoing Citrus Research Board trials at four California locations. Kahn is the Givaudan Citrus Variety Collection endowed chair at the University of California, Riverside (UCR).

The information she presented included the selections’ compatibility with various rootstocks. All of the lemon selections are irradiated and described as seedless, except for LTL001, a seedy variety. The trials are intended to provide California growers with lemons that have superior fruit quality, good yield and potential HLB tolerance or resistance, as well as new rootstock varieties. The trials are at Lindcove, Santa Paula, Riverside and Coachella.  

ALE001 produces fruit that have good size, smooth rinds with average thickness and less than one seed per fruit. Most citrange and trifoliate rootstocks are not recommended.

WRK001 produces a plant with dense foliage. The fruit is of good exterior quality with average rind thickness and smoothness. Fruit shape tends to be more rounded. Rootstock incompatibility has been noted, particularly with C-35 citrange.

LFN001 produces fruit that is oblong with average juice content and peel thickness. LFN001 contains fewer than one seed per fruit in large samples. It is compatible with a wide range of rootstocks.

LTL001 is a low-thorn but seedy variety found at the UCR research field. Its exact genomic origin remains unresolved, which should be considered when selecting a compatible rootstock. Rootstock compatibility seems more similar to Eureka than to Lisbon. Fruit size is competitive with commercial standards. Early trials indicate strong potential for both fresh market and juice production.

WKR003 produces rounded fruit with good exterior quality, average rind thickness and smoothness. Fruit shape tends to be more rounded. It has fewer than one seed per fruit. Avoid C-35 citrange due to incompatibility issues.

LFN003 produces fruit that are oblong and have good exterior quality, average juice content and peel thickness. It has fewer than one seed per fruit in large samples. The selection is compatible with various rootstocks.

LFN004 produces fruit that are oblong with good size, average juice content and peel thickness. The fruit is regarded as very attractive externally for its shape and smooth rind. It performs well on multiple rootstocks.