Photo credit: www.plantandfood.com
HOT84A1
In response to concern about climate change, New Zealand Plant & Food Research has worked with apple researchers and growers in the Catalonia Province of Spain in releasing the first hot-climate apple, ‘HOT84A1’.
Scientists in New Zealand and Spain have developed a hot climate apple that can be grown on the blazing plains of Catalonia, near Barcelona.
Aptly called ‘HOT84A1’, the apple is an answer to apple growers in Catalonia who faced major problems growing traditional cultivars. A collaboration between growers, Catalonia’s Institute of Agriculture and Food Research Technology, and New Zealand’s Plant and Food Research, resulted in the new apple being planted commercially in Spain in 2020.
But the impact of this new ‘manzana’ goes beyond Spain’s borders, as it offers an alternative for apple growers impacted by global warming.
HOT84A1 is the first hot climate apple from the New Zealand-Spain Hot Climate Program, and prior to hitting the global market, will be given a new commercial name. Scientists say the next phase of development is to bring in disease resistance, and in some cases, pest resistance.