Strawberry plant named ‘Taia’

The present invention provides a new and distinct strawberry plant designated as ‘Taia’ (a.k.a. ‘108825’).

Latin name of the genus and species:Fragaria×ananassa.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct strawberry variety designated as ‘Taia’ (a.k.a. ‘108825’).

‘Taia’ (a.k.a. ‘108825’) is the result of a controlled-cross between a female parent cultivar designated 106734 and a male parent cultivar designated 103474 (both unpatented, proprietary cultivars) made by the Inventor and was first fruited in Watsonville, Calif. growing fields. Following selection and during testing, the plant was originally designated ‘108825’ and subsequently named ‘Taia’.

This new variety was asexually reproduced via runners (stolons) by the inventor at Watsonville, Calif. Asexual propagules from the original source have been tested in Watsonville growing fields and to a limited extent, grower fields in high elevation. The properties of this variety were found to be transmissible by such asexual reproduction. This cultivar is stable and reproduces true to type in successive generations of asexual reproduction.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a new and distinctive strawberry cultivar designated as ‘Taia’. These cultivars are primarily adapted to the climate and growing conditions of the central coast of California. This region provides the necessary temperatures required for it to produce a strong vigorous plant and to remain in fruit production from March through October. The nearby Pacific Ocean provides the needed humidity and moderate day temperatures and evening chilling to maintain fruit quality for the production months.

The following traits and photographs in combination distinguish strawberry variety ‘Taia’ from known strawberry varieties. In addition, this new cultivar was confirmed to be a unique strawberry germplasm when tested against the California Seed & Plant Lab, Inc. (Elverta, Calif.) database using Short Sequence Repeats (SSRs). Plants for the botanical measurements in the present application were grown as annuals. Any color references are made to The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart, 1995 Edition, except where general terms of ordinary dictionary significance are used. The fruit produced by this new cultivar is attractive and of excellent quality.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a new and distinctive day-neutral type cultivar designated as ‘Taia’. It is primarily adapted to the climate and growing conditions of the central coast of California. This region provides the necessary temperatures required for it to produce a strong vigorous plant and to remain in fruit production from March through October. The nearby Pacific Ocean provides the needed humidity and moderate day temperatures and evening chilling to maintain fruit quality for the production months.

The following traits in combination distinguish strawberry variety ‘Taia’ from the known strawberry varieties. Plants for the botanical measurements in the present application were grown as annuals. In the following description, color references are made to The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart, 1995 Edition, except where general terms of ordinary dictionary significance are used.

‘Taia’ has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions, and the phenotype may vary significantly with variations in environment. The following observations, measurements, and comparisons describe this plant as grown under normal conditions in Watsonville, Calif. unless otherwise noted.

When ‘Taia’ is compared to the proprietary female parent, ‘Taia’ has a smaller calyx diameter and a smaller corolla diameter. In addition, the number of fruit per truss of ‘Taia’ is fewer than that of the female parent.

When ‘Taia’ is compared to the proprietary male parent, ‘Taia’ has a medium density of foliage, while the male parent has a high density of foliage. The plant vigor of ‘Taia’ is moderate, while the plant vigor of the male parent is high. The terminal leaflet margin of ‘Taia’ is revolute, while the terminal leaflet margin of the male parent is flat.

When ‘Taia’ is compared to ‘Seascape’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 7,614), the terminal leaf of ‘Taia’ has a serrate to crenate margin, while the terminal leaf of ‘Seascape’ has a crenate margin. The leaf glossiness of ‘Taia’ ranges from medium to weak, while the leaf glossiness of ‘Seascape’ is medium. The number of leaflets of ‘Taia’ is 35, while the number of leaflets of ‘Seascape’ is 49.