SundanceTM is a modern disease resistant apple, which was first selected from a breeding programme in the 1960s and introduced in the early 21st century.
The following excellent article describes the origins of this apple in more detail: www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/pri/sundance.pdf. Of particular interest is the pedigree diagram which shows the direct relationship with Golden Delicious, along with the more complex parentage necessary to incorporate the gene for scab resistance which occurs naturally in the crab apple Malus floribunda. This is a good illustration of the challenge facing anyone trying to develop a scab-resistant apple, in effect it is a matter of retaining the scab resistant gene whilst breeding out the other less desirable characteristics of the crab apple (small size and acidic flavor) and replacing them with better qualities from high quality apples such as Golden Delicious.
The identification paintings in the USDA Pomological Watercolor Collection span the years 1886 to 1942.
Citation: U.S. Department of Agriculture Pomological Watercolor Collection. Rare and Special Collections, National Agricultural Library, Beltsville, MD 20705.
Record your blossom dates in our Fruit Tree Register - more >>.
The following orchards grow Sundance:
©2022 Orange Pippin Ltd. All rights reserved.
You may not reproduce any of the content of this website without our express permission.
We do not accept any liability for loss or damage incurred as a result of any errors in the content of this website.