Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution, cilt.73, sa.5, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
The conservation and characterization of fruit tree genetic resources are essential for sustainable breeding and crop improvement. The present study aimed to characterize the morphological, pomological, and biochemical diversity of sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) genetic resources collected from the Eastern Anatolian Region of Türkiye. Twenty-one autochthonous accessions conserved in the fruit genetic resources collection of the Erzincan Horticultural Research Institute were evaluated under uniform environmental and soil conditions. Three trees per genotype were assessed, and replicated samples were collected from each tree for all measured traits. Morphological traits (tree vigor, leaf blade length, fruit shape, juice color, etc.), pomological traits (fruit size and color parameters, etc.), and chemical characteristics (soluble solid, pH, total acidity, glucose, fructose, total sugar, malic acid, and vitamin C) were analyzed through multivariate statistical approaches. Substantial phenotypic and biochemical variability was observed among the evaluated genotypes. Tree vigor of the sweet cherries differed from weak to very strong. Fruit shapes of the accessions were 23.81% cordate, 4.76% reniform, 14.29% oblate, 33.33% circular, and 23.81% elliptic. Total soluble contents ranged from 12.10% to 31.44%. The results revealed that fruit pomological characteristics were highly variable, leading to significant coefficients of variance. Fruit weight ranged from 2.15 g to 6.76 g, stalk length from 28.10 mm to 65.90 mm, and malic acid content from 1.15 to 4.14 mg/L. Principal component analysis accounted for 91.42% of the total population variance with the first six principal components explaining the variance and being strongly associated with fruit color and size parameters. The correlation analysis disclosed noteworthy positive and negative correlations while hierarchical cluster analysis grouped the accessions into two main clusters, reflecting considerable diversity within the germplasm. The results highlight the significant variability present in the Eastern Anatolia sweet cherry genetic resources and identify valuable genotypes for future breeding programs while contributing to the conservation and sustainable utilization of regional germplasm.