Influence of the quality of mother plants on selected parameters of Fragaria x ananassa ‘Elsanta’ daughter plants

High quality planting material is the basis for good strawberry yields. The productivity of strawberry mother plants depends on many factors, but there is little published work on the effects of type and initial size of mother plants on the quality of daughter plants. In the presented study, strawberry mother plants (cultivar ‘Elsanta’) were grown in an unheated tunnel in plastic pots filled with peat-based substrate (5 dm3). The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of type (fresh-dug plants and frigo) and initial size (A and A+ plants) of strawberry mother plants on selected parameters of daughter plants (crown diameter, fresh and dry weight as well as number and area of leaves). The study was carried out in 2006 and 2007. Strawberry mother plants were planted in the second decade of April and daughter plants were detached in the second decade of August. All measurements were performed on the second daughter plant on the mother plant runner. Statistical analysis showed that type of mother plants had a significant effect on number of leaves in daughter plants. Daughter plants obtained from mother plants established from fresh-dug plants had the highest number of leaves. The initial size of mother plants significantly influenced the fresh and dry weight of daughter plants. Smaller mother plants (“A-size”) produced daughter plants with higher fresh and dry weight. The results obtained in the second year of the study were affected by high incidence of powdery mildew