Abstract
The global demand for berry fruits has increased significantly in recent years across all the main crops, partly due to the perceived health benefits derived from their consumption and also because of changes in agronomic techniques that have widened the availability and distribution of these crops. As a result, berry fruits can be purchased virtually year-round in many countries, due to season extension from enhanced agronomic strategies and also imported supplies out with the main domestic cropping season. Berry fruit crops are generally of high value, so their production and marketing can make a major contribution to rural economies.
The berry crops described in this chapter are all grown in broadly temperate climatic zones, in both northern and southern hemispheres. Strawberry remains the largest crop in terms of area and also consumer demand, whilst other crops, notably raspberry and blackberry and especially blueberries, are seeing a rapid escalation of production in many areas. The fruits are used for both fresh- and processed consumption, in proportions that vary according to crop, e.g. blackcurrants are predominantly for processing while in many of the other crops the fresh market outlets are more important. In all of the crops, sales and consumption are currently increasing.
The future for berry crops offers both opportunities and also challenges; the latter are fairly consistent across the various crops, notably the possible effects of a changing climate. The opportunities are often linked to the nutritional benefits of berry fruit components, and as further research-based evidence emerges these can lead to tangible benefits in the future marketing of berry fruits.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Anderson MM (1971) Resistance to gall mite (Phytoptus ribis Nal.) in the Eucoreosma section of Ribes. Euphytica 20:422–426
Anon (2012) 3rd International Blackcurrant Association conference, Dundee, May 2012. http://www.internationalblackcurrantassociation.com/DundeeConferencePDF/IBA%20Global%20Production%20Table%202012%20v18%20June%202012.pdf
Ballington JR (1990) Germplasm resources available to meet future needs for blueberry cultivar improvement. Fruit Var. J 44:54–62
Brevis PA, Bassil NV, Ballington JR, Hancock, JF (2008) Impact of wide hybridization on Highbush blueberry breeding. J Am Soc Hort Sci 133:427–437
Baroffio CA, Trandem N, Birch ANE (2012) Efficiency of attractive traps in the fight against Byturus tomentosus in Raspberries: examples from Switzerland, Scotland and Norway. Acta Hort 946:213–217
Brennan RM (1990) Currants and gooseberries (Ribes spp.). In: Moore JN, Ballington J (eds) Genetic resources of temperate fruit and nuts. ISHS Press, Wageningen, pp 457–488
Brennan RM (1996) Currants and gooseberries. In: Janick J, Moore JN (eds) Fruit breeding, vol II: vine and small fruit crops, John Wiley and Sons Inc, New York, pp 191–295
Brennan R, Graham J (2009) Improving fruit quality in Rubus and Ribes through breeding. Func Plant Sci Biotech 3:22–29
Brennan R, Jorgensen L, Hackett C, Woodhead M, Gordon SL, Russell J (2008) The development of a genetic linkage map of blackcurrant (Ribes nigrum L.) and the identification of regions associated with key fruit quality and agronomic traits. Euphytica 161:19–34
Brennan R, Jorgensen L, Gordon SL, Loades K, Hackett C, Russell, J (2009) The development of a PCR-based marker linked to resistance to the blackcurrant gall mite (Cecidophyopsis ribis Acari: Eriophyidae). Theor Appl Genet 118:205–212
Brierley WG (1931) Notes on the fall flowering habit of the red raspberry. P Am Soc Hortic Sci 28:180–181
Bringhurst RS (1982) Hybridization in strawberries. California Agric 36(8):25
Bryla DR, Strik BC (2007) Effects of cultivar and plant spacing on the seasonal water requirements of highbush blueberry. J Am Soc Hortic Sci 132:270–277
Camp, WH (1945) The North American blueberries with notes on other groups of Vacciniaceae. Brittonia 5:203–275
Clark JR, Finn CE (2011) Blackberry breeding and genetics. In: Flachowsky H, Hanke V- M (eds) Methods in temperate fruit breeding. Fruit, vegetable and cereal science and biotechnology 5 (Special Issue 1). Global Science Books Ltd, UK, pp 27–43
Clark JR, Stafne ET, Hall H, Finn CE (2007). Blackberry breeding and genetics. Plant Breed Rev 29:19–144
Dale A, Sjulin TM (1990) Few cytoplasms contribute to North American strawberry cultivars. Hortscience 25:1341–1342
Darrow GM (1966) The strawberry. History, breeding and physiology. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York
Dean D, James F, Price JF, Steck G, Curtis A, Nagle CA (2012) Development and impact of the Spotted Wing Drosophila, Drosophila suzukii, in Florida strawberries. Int J Fruit Sci 13:67–75
Dossett M, Lee J, Finn CE (2012). Anthocyanin content of wild black raspberry germplasm. Acta Hort 946:43–47
Eck P (1988) Blueberry science. Rutgers University Press, New Brunswick
Eck P, Childers NF (1966) Blueberry culture. Rutgers University Press, New Brunswick
Ehlenfeldt MK (2005) Fruit firmness and holding ability in highbush blueberry: implications for mechanical harvesting. Int J Fruit Sci 5:83–91
FAO (2012) FAOSTAT. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Statistics Division http://faostat.fao.org
Feng QC, Wang X, Zheng WG, Qiu Q, Jiang K (2012) New strawberry harvesting robot for elevated-trough culture. Int J Agric Biol Eng 5:1–8
Finn CE (2008) Blackberries. In: Hancock JF (ed) Temperate fruit crop breeding: germplasm to genomics. Springer Science+Business Media, pp 83–114
Finn CE, Clark JR (2011) Emergence of blackberry as a world crop. Chronica Hortic 51:13–18
Finn C, Knight VH (2002) What’s going on in the world of Rubus breeding? Acta Hort 585:31–38
Gil G (2000) Fruticultura: La producción de fruta. Frutas de clima templado y subtropical y uva de vin. Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago
Giné Bordonaba J, Terry LA (2008) Biochemical profiling and chemometric analysis of seventeen UK- grown blackcurrant cultivars. J Agr Food Chem 56:7422–7430
Gough RE (1994) The Highbush Blueberry and its management. Food Product Press, Binghamton
Graham J, Hackett CA, Smith K, Woodhead M, MacKenzie K, Tierney I, Cooke D, Bayer M, Jennings N (2011) Towards an understanding of the nature of resistance to Phytophthora root rot in red raspberry. Theor Appl Genet 123:585–601
Jones HG, Hillis RM, Gordon SL, Brennan RM (2012) An approach to the determination of winter chill requirements for different Ribes cultivars. Plant Biology 15:18–27
Hall HK, Stephens MJ, Alspach P, Stanley CJ, Kempler C (2002) Traits of importance for machine harvest of raspberries. Acta Hort 585:607–610
Hancock JF (2006) Highbush blueberry breeders. HortScience 41:20–21
Hancock JF, Haghighi K, Krebs SL, Flore JA, Draper AD (1992) Photosynthetic heat stability in highbush blueberries and the possibility of genetic improvement. HortScience 27:1111–1112
Hancock JF, Callow PW, Serçe S, Phan Quynh Son (2003) Variation in the horticultural characteristics of native Fragaria virginiana and F. chiloensis from North and South America. Amer Soc Hort Sci 128:201–208
Hancock JF, Lyrene P, Finn CE, Vorsa N, Lobos GA (2008) Blueberry and cranberry. In: Hancock JF (ed) Temperate fruit crop breeding: germplasm to genomics. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht
Hanson EJ, Hancock JF (1996) Managing the nutrition of highbush blueberries. Michigan State University Extension, Extension Bull E–2011
Hayashi S, Shigematsu K, Yamamoto S, Kobayashi K, Kohno Y, Kamata J (2010) Evaluation of a strawberry-harvesting robot in a field test. Biosyst Eng 105:160–171
Hummer KE, Dale A (2010) Horticulture of Ribes. Forest Pathol 40:251–263
Hummer KE, Janick J (2007) Rubus iconography: antiquity to the Renaissance. Acta Hort 759:89–106
IPCC (2001) Climate Change 2001. Working group II: impacts, adaptations and vulnerability. Third assessment report—climate change 2001—complete online versions. http://www.grida.no/publications/other/ipcc_tar/?src=/climate/ipcc_tar/wg2/. Accessed 20 Jan 2013
Jennings DL (1988) Raspberries and blackberries: their breeding, diseases and growth. Academic Press, London
Jennings DL, Daubeny HA, Moore JN (1992) Blackberries and raspberries (Rubus). Acta Hort 290:331–389
Knight RL, Keep E, Briggs JB, Parker JH (1974) Transference of resistance to blackcurrant gall mite, Cecidophyopsis ribis, from gooseberry to blackcurrant. Ann Appl Biol 76:123–130
Lerceteau-Kohler E, Guerin G, Laigret F, Denoyes-Rothan B (2003) Characterization of mixed disomic and polysomic inheritance in the octoploid strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa) using AFLP mapping. Theor Appl Genet 107:619–628
Lieten P (2012) Advances in strawberry substrate culture during the last twenty years in the Netherlands and Belgium. Int J Fruit Sci 13:84–90
Lobos GA, Retamales JB, Hancock JF, Flore JA, Cobo NG, Del Pozo A (2012) Spectral irradiance, gas exchange characteristics and leaf traits of Vaccinium corymbosum L. ‘Elliott’ grown under photo-selective nets. Environ Exper Bot 75:142–149
Lyrene PM (1998) Ralph Sharpe and the Florida blueberry breeding program. In: Cline WO, Ballington JR (eds) 8th North American Blueberry Research and Extension Workers Conference, 1998 Raleigh. North Carolina State University, 1–7
McCallum S, Woodhead M, Jorgensen L, Gordon S, Brennan R, Graham J, Hackett CA, Rowland LJ, Hancock JF, Olmstead JW, Bassil NV (2012) Developing tools for long-term breeding of blueberry germplasm for UK production. Int J Fruit Sci 12:294–303
McMenemy LS, Mitchell C, Johnson SN (2009) Biology of the European large raspberry aphid (Amphorophora idaei): its role in virus transmission and resistance breakdown in red raspberry. Agric For Entomol 10:1–11
Mazeikiene I, Bendokas V, Stanys V, Siksnianas T (2012) Molecular markers linked to resistance to the gall mite in blackcurrant. Plant Breed 131:762–766
Moerman DE (1998) Native American ethnobotany. Timber Press, Portland
Moon JW, Flore JA, Hancock JF (1987) A comparison of carbon and water vapor gas exchange characteristics between a diploid and highbush blueberry. J Amer Soc Hort Sci 112:134–138
Moore JN (1979) Small fruit breeding—a rich heritage, a challenging future. HortScience 14:333–341
Moore PP, Martin RR (2008) Screening for resistance to raspberry Bushy Dwarf virus via pollen transmission. Acta Hort 777:379–383
Nesmith DS, Nunez-Barrios A, Prussia SE, Aggarwal D (2005) Postharvest berry quality of six rabbiteye blueberry cultivars in response to temperature. J Amer Pomol Soc 59:13–17
Novy RG, Vorsa N, Kobak C, Goffreda J (1994) RAPDs identify varietal misclassification and regional divergence in cranberry [Vaccinium macrocarpon (Ait.) Pursh]. Theor Appl Genet 88 1004–1010
Oliveira PB, Oliveira CM, Machado PV, Lopes-da-Fonseca L, Monteiro AA (1998) Improving off- season production of primocane-fruiting red raspberry by altering summer-pruning intensity. HortScience 33:31–33
Oliveira PB, Lopes-da-Fonseca L, Monteiro AA (2002) Combining different growing techniques for all year round red raspberry production in Portugal. Acta Hort 585:545–553
Prange RK, Deell JR (1997) Preharvest factors affecting postharvest quality of berry crops. HortScience 32:824–830
Retamales JB, Hancock JF (2012) Blueberries. CABI Publishing, Wallingford
Roach FA (1985) Cultivated fruits of Britain: their origin and history. Blackwell, Oxford
Ross HA, McDougall GJ, Stewart D (2007) Antiproliferative activity is predominantly associated with ellagitannins in raspberry extracts. Phytochemistry 68:218–228
Rowland L, Hammerschlag FA (2005). Vaccinium spp. blueberry. In: Litz RE (ed) Biotechnology of fruit and nut crops. CABI Publishing, Wallingford
Rowland LJ, Levi A (1994) A RAPD-based genetic linkage map of blueberry derived from a cross between diploid species (Vaccinium darrowi and V. elliottii). Theor Appl Genet 87:863–868
Rowland LJ, Mehra S, Dhanaraj AL, Ogden EL, Slovin JP, Ehlenfeldt MK (2003) Development of EST-PCR markers for DNA fingerprinting and genetic relationship studies in Blueberry (Vaccinium, section Cyanococcus). J Amer Soc Hortic Sci 128:682–690
Rowland LJ, Hancock JF, Bassil NV (2011) Blueberry. In: Folta KM, Kole C (eds) Genetics, genomics and breeding of berries. Science Publishers, Enfield, pp 1–40
Rowland LJ, Bell DJ, Alkharouf N, Bassil NV, Drummond FA, Beers L, Buck EJ, Finn CE, Graham J, McCallum S, Hancock JF, Polashock JJ, Olmstead JW, Main D (2012) Generating genomic tools for blueberry improvement. Int J Fruit Sci 12:276–287
Russell J, Bayer M, Booth C, Cardle L, Hackett C, Hedley PE, Jorgensen L, Brennan RM (2011) Identification, utilisation and mapping of novel transcriptome-based markers from blackcurrant (Ribes nigrum). BMC Plant Sci 11:147
Sargent DJ, Clarke J, Simpson DW, Tobutt KR, Arus P, Monfort A, Vilanova S, Denoyes-Rothan B, Rousseau M, Folta KM, Bassil NV, Battey NH (2006) An enhanced microsatellite map of diploid Fragaria. Theor Appl Genet 112:1349–1359
Sargent DJ, Passey T, Surbanovski N, Girona EL, Kuchta P, Davik J, Harrison R, Passey A, Whitehouse AB, Simpson DW (2012) A microsatellite linkage map for the cultivated strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa) suggests extensive regions of homozygosity in the genome that may have resulted from breeding and selection. Theor Appl Genet 124:1229–1240
Shaw DV, Larson KD (2008) Performance of early-generation and modern strawberry cultivars from the University of California breeding programme in growing systems simulating traditional and modern horticulture. J Hort Sci Biotech 83:648–652
Shulaev V, Sargent DJ, Crowhurst RN, Mockler TC, Folkerts O, Delcher AL, Jaiswal P, Mockaitis K, Liston A, Mane SP, Burns P, Davis TM, Slovin JP, Bassil N, Hellens RP, Evans C, Harkins T, Kodira C, Desany B, Crasta OR, Jensen RV, Allan AC, Michael TP, Setubal JC, Celton JM, Rees DJG [et al] (2011) The genome of woodland strawberry (Fragaria vesca). Nat Genet 43:109–116
Sills G (2010) Small fruits: production and commercialization: the Driscoll case. Embrapa Clima Temperado, Simpósio Nacional do Morango 5:12–15
Sjulin TM, Dale A (1987) Genetic diversity of North American strawberry cultivars. J Amer Soc Hortic Sci 112:375–385
Stegmeir TL, Finn CE, Warner RM, Hancock JF (2010) Performance of an elite strawberry population derived from wild germplasm of Fragaria chiloensis and F. virginiana. HortScience 45:1140–1145
Strik BC (2005) Blueberry—an expanding world berry crop. Chronica Hort 45:7–12
Strik BC, Yarborough D (2005) Blueberry production trends in North America, 1992 to 2003, and predictions for growth. HortTechnology 15:391–398
Strik BC, Clark JR, Finn CE, Bañados MP (2007) Worldwide blackberry production. HortTechnology 17:205–213
Takeda F, Krewer G, Andrews EL, Mullinix B, Peterson DL (2008) Assessment of the V45 blueberry harvester on Rabbiteye blueberry and Southern Highbush Blueberry pruned to V-shaped canopy. HortTechnology 18:130–138
Tavares L, Figueira I, Macedo D, McDougall GJ, Leitão MC, Vieira H, Stewart D, Alves P, Ferreira RB, Santos CN (2011) Neuroprotective effect of blackberry (Rubus sp.) polyphenols is potentiated after simulated gastrointestinal digestion. Food Chem 131:1443–1452
Trehane J (2004) Blueberries, blueberries and other Vaccinium. Timber Press, Portland
Volunez AG, Zazulina NA (1980) Selection of blackcurrant hybrids with a high content of vitamin C (in Russian). Plodovodstvo 4:60–64
Walker PG, Viola R, Woodhead M, Jorgensen L, Gordon SL, Brennan RM, Hancock RD (2010) Ascorbic acid content of blackcurrant fruit is influenced by both genetic and environmental factors. Funct Plant Sci Biotech 4:40–52
Wang SY, Jiao H (2000) Scavenging capacity of berry crops on superoxide radicals, hydrogen peroxide, hydroxyl radicals, and singlet oxygen. J Agric Food Chem 48:5677–84
Weber CA (2003) Genetic Diversity in Black Raspberry Detected by RAPD Markers. HortScience 38:269–272
Williamson JG, Krewer G, Pavlis G, Mainland CM (2006) Blueberry soil management, nutrition and irrigation. In: Childers NF, Lyrene PM (eds) Blueberries: for growers, gardeners, promoters. Dr. Norman F. Childers Publications, Gainesville
Acknowledgements
The co-authors’ contributions are as follows:
Dr. David Simpson and Mr. Scott Raffle wrote the section on strawberry.
Dr. Pedro Oliveira wrote the section on raspberry.
Dr. Chad Finn and Prof. John Clark wrote the section on blackberry.
Dr. Rex Brennan and Ms. Dorota Jarret wrote the section on currants and gooseberries.
Dr. Gustavo Lobos, Prof. Peter Caligari and Prof. Jim Hancock wrote the section on blueberry.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Brennan, R. et al. (2014). Berry Crops. In: Dixon, G., Aldous, D. (eds) Horticulture: Plants for People and Places, Volume 1. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8578-5_9
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8578-5_9
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-017-8577-8
Online ISBN: 978-94-017-8578-5
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)