Evaluation of Fruit Characteristics of Blackberry Genotypes Grown in Eastern Mediterranean

Fruit characteristics of some blackberry genotypes such as erect, semierect and trailing thornless and one thorny blackberry were evaluated at Kahramanmaras province in Eastern Mediterranean region of Turkey. Six cultivars (‘Jumbo’, ‘Nessy’, ‘Navaho’, ‘Chester Thornless’, ‘Arapaho’ and ‘Cherokee’ (thorny) and four selections (‘Bursa1’,  ‘Bursa2 ’, ‘Bursa3’ and ‘Bartin’) were characterized during 2002 and 2003 growing seasons. In this study fruit weight, total soluble solid (TSS) content, fruit acidity, pH, flavor, firmness, first flowering date and harvest period were observed. The first date of flowering was observed in the second week of May. ‘Jumbo’ cultivar showed wider harvesting period than other cultivars. Heaviest fruit set was shown by ‘Navaho’ in 2002 while ‘Jumbo’ and ‘Arapaho’ in 2003. Key Words: Rubus sp . L., fruit characteristics, Kahramanmaras Dogu Akdeniz’de Yetisen Bogurtlen Genotiplerinin Meyve Karakterlerinin Degerlendirilmesi OZET: Turkiye’nin Dogu Akdeniz Bolgesi’nde Kahramanmaras ilinde dik, yari dik ve surunucu 9 dikensiz ve 1 dikenli bogurtlen cesidinin meyve karakterleri degerlendirildi. 2002-2003 de 6 cesit (‘Jumbo’, ‘Nessy’, ‘Navaho’, Chester Thornless’, ‘Arapaho’ ve ‘Cherokee’ (dikenli) ve 4 seleksiyon (‘Bursa1’, Bursa2’, ‘Bursa3’ ve ‘Bartin’) cesidi arastirildi. Verim, meyve agirligi, suda cozunebilir toplam kuru madde, meyve asitligi, pH, tad, sertlik, ciceklenme baslangici ve hasat periyodu kayit edildi. Ilk ciceklenme mayisin ikinci haftasi goruldu. ’Jumbo’ cesidinin hasat periyodunun digerlerinden daha uzun oldugu belirlendi. 2002 yilinda en iri meyveler ‘Navaho’ cesidinden elde edilirken, 2003 yilinda ‘Jumbo’ ve ‘Arapaho’dan elde edildi. Anahtar Kelimeler: Rubus sp . L. , meyve karakterleri, Kahramanmaras