Sustainable Production and Utilization of ‘ Ōhelo as an Edible Berry and Ornamental Crop

1. Sustainable Production and Utilization of ‘Ōheloas an Edible Berry and Ornamental Crop Francis Zee1, Lisa Keith1, Amy Strauss1, Claire Arakawa1, Tristan Foote1, Kim Hummer2, Barbara Reed2, Nahla Bassil2, Stuart T. Nakamoto3, Randall Hamasaki3, Milton Yamasaki3, Andrew Kawabata3, Bob Durst4, Allan K. Ikawa5, Jodi Silva5, Ken Love6, Yongjian Chang7

3. SCRI Project Goals • Clonal propagation and production protocols • Establish molecular fingerprinting and • Cryopreservation methodology • Conduct fruit nutrient analyses • Determine host-pathogen interactions

4. SCRI Project Goals • Produce ohelo as an ornamental from flask to nursery to market • Prepare economic feasibility analyses of ohelo as ornamental potted plant • Provide extension and outreach • Develop seed based production protocols • Initiate value added products and culinary research

5. Pélé Goddess of Fire • Destroyed >100 structures since 1983 • Added >70 acres to the SE coast

7. Ōhelo

9. Attractive red and green foliage

10. Attractive flowers

11. Cultivated for edible fruits

12. ‘Ōhelo plants around the Volcano Area

14. Goals • Reduce wild gathering of ‘ōhelo for commercial uses. • Reduce traffic and the spread of invasive weeds • Provide a sustainable (supply) of berries for culinary and value added product research (demand). Two hand-full of berries to start

15. Dr. Francis Zee and Vaccinium reticulatum seedlings

16. Ohelo Cultivar Releases 2009 • Kilauea • Nene • Red Button

17. New Selections

18. ‘Ōhelo Propagation Seed, Cuttings, Tissue Culture Identification Utilization Fruit nutrient analysis Culinary uses

19. ‘Ōhelo • PROPAGATION • Seed • Cuttings • Tissue Culture Cold storage/ Cryogenics

20. Ohelo from seeds …

21. … to seed Ohelo seeds

22. ‘Ōhelo seed storage and germination Barbara Reed USDA-ARS

23. Clonal Propagation of ‘ōhelo

24. Cold Storage in semipermeable bagsfor 12-16 months Red Button Nene Kilauea Barbara Reed USDA-ARS

25. Cold Storage of Shoot Cultures Barbara Reed USDA-ARS

26. ‘Red Button’ cryopreserved with encapsulation dehydration. S = sucrose treatment, D = dehydration, the others were exposed to liquid nitrogen Barbara Reed USDA-ARS

27. Cryopreservation of ‘ōhelo clones Barbara Reed USDA-ARS

28. Field and Nursery management Produced 50 lb of ‘ōhelo berry for R&D May to July 2010 17.2 lbs from field planting 33.1 lbs from potted ohelo plants NO9-16 clones

29. A sustainable source of ‘ōhelo seeds for germplasm requests

30. USDA/ARS display and information table Six inch ohelo seedlings for BIAN plant sale NO6-7 Bonsai

31. ‘Ōhelo • Holiday foliage plant • Landscape plant • Fruit production • Culinary product development

32. Ōhelo

33. ‘Ōhelo • Identification by Molecular Markers • Cultivar – • Genetic Diversity assessment

34. Microsatellite marker-based fingerprints for three important selections Red Button Kilaua Nene 294 294 298 294 296 308 • Tested 23 blueberry (V. corymbosum) SSRs • NA741: an example of one SSR that differentiates between 3 selections

35. Microsatellite marker-based fingerprints for three important selections Eight SSRs reliably distinguish between these selections

36. Dendrogram based on microsatellite analysis using six primer pairs.

37. 83 V ret Ohelo 6 V ret Ohelo 9 V ret 780 Hawaiian Taxa V ret Ohelo 7 71 V cal 1812 V cal 1814 96 V praes 1626 97 V. praestans V praes 1569 V praes 1570 V memb 1372 99 V memb 141 V memb 1213 V scop V myrt 464 V myrt 1622 V myrt 379 V oval 1118 V oval 1189 V parv 436 V myrt 627 V oval 1421 V cesp 1489 Bluecrop V cesp 1651 V oval 1546 100 V myrt 1684-1 V myrt 1684-3 V oval 1375 V del 403 3 V del 403 6 V oval 1252 V oval 1258 0.05 Section Myrtillus • SSRs for 10 species in section Myrtillus • Hawaiian taxa more recently derived • Russian V. praestansgrouped together • Genetically identical V. myrtillus 1684-1 and 1684-3 from Kalmiopsis Wilderness, OR.

38. Germplasm conservation • Sustainable germplasm resource for • research • Ornamental potted plants • Alternate source from wild harvest • Sustainable and reliable source of berry for culinary and value added product uses.

40. Diseases of ‘Ōhelo Pucciniastrumvaccini Rust Leaf spots and sudden collapse - Calonectria sp. PowderyMildew Microsphaera sp. 30 days after inoculation

41. Anthocyanins • Similar to cranberry, but v. low peonidin • Rich source of phenolics • Acids • Similar profile to cranberry, but lower amounts • Sugar profile • Extremely Good source of PAC’s • Especially V. calycinum Fruit Analysis Summary

42. Pro Anthocyanadins 10 x as much!

43. ‘Ōhelo - Utilization Culinary recipes • Ohelo Berry and Horseradish Pot Roast • SweettartOhelo-Berry Compote • Foie Gras with Ohelo Berries • Goat Cheese and Ohelo Berry Bruschetta • Grilled Lime Tequila Chicken with Ohelo Berry and Pineapple Sauce • Ohelo and Oatmeal Pie • Ohelo glazed Duck • Ohelo creamed cheese pie

44. SCRI Project Goals  • Clonal propagation and production protocols • Establish molecular fingerprinting • Cryopreservation methodology • Conduct fruit nutrient analyses • Determine host-pathogen interactions    

45. SCRI Project Goals  • Produce ohelo as an ornamental from flask to nursery to market • Prepare economic feasibility analyses of ohelo as ornamental potted plant • Provide extension and outreach • Develop seed based production protocols • Initiate value added products and culinary research  SUCCESS!   

46. Cooperators 1U.S. Dept. Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service (USDA, ARS) Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center (PBARC) P.O. Box 4487, Hilo, Hawaii 96720; 2USDA ARS National ClonalGermplasm Repository (NCGR), 33447 Peoria Road, Corvallis, Oregon, 97333-2521; 3University of Hawaii, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (UH, CTAHR), 1955East-West Rd. AgSci 314B, .Honolulu, HI 96822; 4Linus Pauling Institute, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331-6512; 5Research & Development, Big Island Candies, Hilo, HI; 6Hawaii Tropical Fruit Grower Association, President and Agriculture Chair of the American Culinary Federation chapter – Kona Kohala Chefs Association, Kona, HI; 7North American Plants LLC, McMinnville, OR 97128-8410.

47. Thank you to everyone!