Citrus Growers Forum

MarcV · Posted: Sat 05 Jan, 2013 4:43 pm

One question to stir the pot a little... Embarassed

Pomelo is considered one of the original citrus species, so it must once have been propagating by seeds only. So if pomelo is pollinated by pomelo, wouldn't that result in true pomelo seed? Or are todays pomelos already contaminated by DNA from other citrus species?

Just a question! Wink

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Sanguinello · Gest

Pomelos like Chandler are hybrids (Siamese SweetxSiameseRed), but Siamese Sweet is pure, maybe the original Pomelo.

I only tried with Siamese Sweet, so I can tell about this one only.

Sometimes I get also seeds of Siamese Red, but the seeds don´t germinate .. Sad

GregMartin · Posted: Sat 05 Jan, 2013 4:53 pm

MarcV wrote:

So if pomelo is pollinated by pomelo, wouldn't that result in true pomelo seed?

Yes, you just won't get the true cultivar.

Radoslav · Posted: Sat 05 Jan, 2013 5:12 pm

Pomelo (citrus grandis) do not create its own clones. So, maybe you will have pomelo from pomelo seed, but it never be a clone of mother with identical features.

Sylvain · Posted: Sat 05 Jan, 2013 5:28 pm

Well, that is what i believed until ten days ago.
I obtained 50 seeds of Chinese pommelo which are usually seedless.
They all germinated and two seeds appeared to be polyembryonic.
Two seedlings each. So I have 2 true-to-type but I don't know exactly wich of each pair.

Lemandarangequatelo · Citruholic Joined: 01 Mar 2010 Posts: 485 Location: UK

Sylvain wrote:

Well, that is what i believed until ten days ago.
I obtained 50 seeds of Chinese pommelo which are usually seedless.
They all germinated and two seeds appeared to be polyembryonic.
Two seedlings each. So I have 2 true-to-type but I don't know exactly wich of each pair.

Sylvain you are very lucky! I never find any seeds in those Chinese Honey pummelos, they always pick them too young so the seeds are tiny and undeveloped. Keep us posted about your seedlings.

Radoslav · Posted: Sat 05 Jan, 2013 6:01 pm

I have the same experience with chinese Honey pomelo seeds. My personal bet is, that chinese Honey pomelo is citrus grandis x citrus paradisi hybrid itself.
But there is also possibility Exclamation

described in case of monoebryonic seeds, that sometime they create "twins", so it looks like polyemb. but truly they are only monoembryonic twins.

Sanguinello · Gest

I get seeds from Siam Sweet sometimes .. I can provide seeds then ...

Sylvain · Posted: Sat 05 Jan, 2013 8:26 pm

Radoslav, why don't you let me dream a little!? Smile

pagnr · Posted: Sun 06 Jan, 2013 9:10 am

Pakistan ?
The Malaysian word for Citrus is Djeruk, ( Djerook, Jeruk ) also the same word is used in Indonesia. Not sure which language it's from.
That doesn't mean the var is not from Pakistan, but it may have originated elsewhere ?

ilyaC · Posted: Sun 06 Jan, 2013 9:31 am

Radoslav wrote:

I have the same experience with chinese Honey pomelo seeds. My personal bet is, that chinese Honey pomelo is citrus grandis x citrus paradisi hybrid itself.
But there is also possibility Exclamation

described in case of monoebryonic seeds, that sometime they create "twins", so it looks like polyemb. but truly they are only monoembryonic twins.

In the case of two embryos in the same seed coat, one of the twins should be zygotic from cross-pollination while the other is developed from a synergid cell that has the same genetic structure as ovum, that is haploid.
It should give a weaker seedling. In the modern rose selection such seeds are being used for ploidy reduction .

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Radoslav · Posted: Sun 06 Jan, 2013 12:40 pm

I think in this case it is just:
"Polyembryony.
The formation of multiple embryos is quite common in many citrus cultivars. These "extra" embryos may be the result of multiple zygotic embryos or twinning of a single zygotic embryo...."

http://irrec.ifas.ufl.edu/flcitrus/pdfs/short_course_and_workshop/citrus_flowering_97/Jackson-Seed_Development.pdf

Ilya, I am just curious, haploid is carrying only mother set of chromosomes, but it is not a clone exactly - am I right? so what it is than? - New variety?

ilyaC · Posted: Sun 06 Jan, 2013 1:42 pm

Radoslav,
Sure, it is not a clone of the mother plant, in most of the cases it is much less vigorous. Haploid clementine, one of the two citruses whose genome is now determined is a very plant.

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Ilya