Cucurbit Genetics Cooperative Report 10:103 (article 53) 1987
Theodore H. Superak
Harris Moran Seed Company, 3760 Buffalo Road, Rochester, NY 14624
During the summer of 1986, an F2 population of Cucurbita pepo was observed to segregate for a new flower mutant. The mutant had a green, leaf-like corolla in both male and female flowers. Early male flowers were sterile with brown anthers; later male flowers had normal appearing yellow anthers, but were still sterile. Corollas of both male and female flowers were partially open at an early stage and remained that way, giving no indication of a distinct time of opening. Female flowers appeared to be fertile, but repeated sib pollinations failed and there were no fruit from open pollination. In addition, the mutant flowers were large, although this may be related to the genetic backgrounds of the parents.
The segregation ratio of 19 normal to 7 mutant plants suggests a single recessive gene. It is proposed that the mutant be called green corolla and the gene symbol gc be adopted. Among the Cucurbits this mutant most closely resembles the co gene discovered in Cucumis sativus by Hutchins (1). A green corolla gene in Cucumis melo, described by Mockaitis and Kivilaan (2), is similar, but affected plants have only non-functional female-like flowers. Zink (3) recently described a greenish-yellow corolla mutant of Cucumis melo, but this is fully fertile.
Seed of F2 has been given to the curator of the genus Cucurbita, Dr. R. W. Robinson, who kindly supplied the literature citations, and any requests for seed should be directed to him.
Literature Cited
- Hutchins, A. E. 1935. The inheritance of a green flowered variation in Cucumis sativus. Proc. Amer. Soc. Hort. Sci. 33:513.
- Mockaitis, J. M. and A. Kivilaan. 1965. A green corolla mutant in Cucumis melo L. Naturwissenschaften 52:434.
- Zink, F. W. 1986. Inheritance of a greenish-yellow corolla mutant in muskmelon. Jour. Heredity 77:363.