Development of apple varieties may have just solved one of the fruit’s oldest issues - apple scab.

Researchers at the University of Illinois have developed a new apple, the WineCrisp, which is resistant to the fungal disease that affects apples grown in areas of high humidity and rainfall.

University of Illinois plant geneticist Schuyler Korban told The News-Gazette.com: “Apple scab weakens a tree and attaches itself to the fruit. It leads to misshapen fruit that cannot be sold, and the apples can only be used for juice.”

Most orchards use fungicide to fight scab, but Korban and fellow researchers used cross-breeding through five generations of trees to transfer the anti-apple scab traits from the crab apples to other varieties.

“Not only is the fungicide costly and labour-intensive, but it is also unacceptable to lovers of organic food,” Korban said. “In addition, many apple consumers are concerned about the hazards of eating fruit that has been treated with fungicides.

“Any time we can reduce the amount of chemicals used, it leads to better environmental impact and less residue on the apple.

“This particular apple is red and very firm. It may be stored for six to seven months in coldstorage. It has a crispy, crunchy texture and a good balance between sugar and acid. The dark red colour looks like the colour of wine, so that is where the name comes from,” said Korban.

WineCrisp generally ripens during the second and third week of October. There are now six WineCrisp trees in the Illinois University orchard.

Topics