Breeding of A New Pollen-free Ornamental Sunflower Variety,Minkur 3

Minkui 3 is a new,pollen-free ornamental sunflower variety developed by cross-breeding the CS(with white petals)as female parent and the high-generation inbred line,M1R3-1(with yellow petals),as male parent by the Crop Institute,Fujian Academy of Agricultural Sciences.The new variety was confirmed to be a true hybrid offsping by molecular marker analysis,such as RAPD and ISSR.The results obtained from the cultivation at various sites for several years showed that Minkui 3 could be used for ornamental cut flower production and garden cultivation because of its stable ornamental characteristics,yellow petals,bright colors,pollen-free property and branching capability.Minkui 3 had a growth period of 92-112 days.Its plant height was 96.0-170.0 cm with faceplate diameter of 6.4-7.2 cm,flower diameter of 13.7-14.8 cm,petal number of 34-39,and a cut flower lifespan of 9-14 d.This vigorous,adaptable,new variety had a short growth period,was suitable for year-round cultivation,and provided a cutting output of 90000-120000 piecesm-2.Minkui 3 had passed the provincial appraisal in 2011.The instruction manual for cultivation is also available.