Pollination, breeding and selection of new varieties of custard apple (Annona spp. hybrids) in Australia

Progress has been made in understanding the mechanism of pollination in custard apple (Annona spp. hybrids) in subtropical Australia. ‘KJ Pinks’, a bud sport of the custard apple ‘Pink’s Mammoth’ exhibited natural fruit set in excess of 40% compared with its parent which set <3%. The very high fruit set levels of the ‘KJ Pinks’ will revolutionise the production of custard apple in Australia as it offers major commercial advantages over older cultivars which required expensive hand pollination. Some 30,000 breeding lines have been field planted at the Maroochy Research Station, Nambour, Queensland since 1998 including interspecific crosses between Annona cherimola, Annona squamosa, Annona reticultata and Annona diversifolia and intergeneric crosses with Rollinia deliciosa. Phylogenetic relationships have been established between the different species and varieties in the breeding program using 15 polymorphic SSR markers.