Abstract:

Oil-tea camellia is the most important woody edible oil tree species in China. To improve fruit setting rate, proper pollination varieties were selected for 3 main Camelliaoleifera varieties (i.e. Changlin 4, Eyou 81 and Eyou 102) in Hubei Province, China. Pollens were from 5 varieties, Changlin 3, Changlin 4, Changlin 40, Eyou 81 and Eyou 102, using natural pollination as control. Fruit setting rate, fruit featrues, seed kernel oil content, and fatty acid contents were investigated. Among them, fruit setting rate of self-pollinated Changlin 4 and Eyou 81 was very low, while that of Eyou 102 was relatively high; pollination varieties had significant effect on fruit setting rate; for Changlin 4, pollination varieties had no significant effect on fruit fresh weight, dry seed rate, dry seed kernel rate, oil content and linoleic acid content, but had significant effect on fruit setting rate and fruit size; for Eyou 81, pollination varieties had no significant effect on dry peel thickness, dry seed kernel rate and kernel oil content, but had significant effect on fruit setting rate, fruit size and fresh weight per fruit; for Eyou 102, pollination varieties had significant effect on fruit setting rate, dry peel thickness, dry seed rate and kernel oil content, but had no significant effect on others. Comprehensively based on fruit setting rate and fruit traits, the best pollination varieties for Changlin 4 was Changlin 3, followed by Changlin 40 and Eyou 102; the suitable pollination varieties for Eyou 81 were Changlin 4 and Eyou 102; the best pollination variety for Eyou 102 was Eyou 81, followed by Changlin 3, Changlin 4 and Changlin 40.

Key words: oil-tea camellia, pollination variety, fruit setting rate, fruit characteristics