Agronomic Performance of Fusarium wilt tolerant elite clones of bananas subgroup ‘Prata’ (AAB)

Abstract The evaluation of new banana genotypes with agronomic potential and tolerant to the main pests and diseases is essential for the market. The objective was to evaluate the vegetative and productive characteristics of new potential banana clones, such as ‘Prata Gorutuba R1’ and ‘Prata Gorutuba R2’ and commercial cultivars. The experiment was implemented in a rural property located in the municipality of Nova Porteirinha, MG. The treatments consisted of ‘Prata Gorutuba R1’ and ‘Prata Gorutuba R2’ banana clones (genotypes selected from the ‘Prata Anã’ clone ‘Gorutuba’ tolerant to Panama disease) and four cultivars: ‘Prata Gorutuba’, ‘Prata Anã’, ‘Grande Naine’ and ‘BRS Princesa’. The treatments were distributed in randomized blocks, with four replications and six useful plants per plot. The planting spacing used was 3.5 m x 1.7 m. The evaluations were carried out in the first and second production cycles. The ‘Prata Gorutuba R1’ and’ Prata Gorutuba R2’ clones in general showed excellent performance compared to the already consolidated cultivars. The clones presented median height and number of leaves in the ideal flowering for banana trees of the ‘Prata’ subgroup. Bunch and bunch weight, as well as production were similar to the ‘Prata Anã’, ‘Prata Gorutuba’ and ‘BRS Princesa’ cultivars. Considering that the clones evaluated present high tolerance to Fusarium wilt, the result indicates that the materials have great potential for the registration of new cultivars.