‘Korta’

the cultivar was obtained by breeder A.Vāvere at PūreHorticulture Research Station in1947. For many years it was believed to be a cross of cultivars ‘Rēveles Bumbierābele’ (by original name ‘Tallinna Pirnõun’) and ‘Cukuriņš’ (by original name ‘Korobovka’). Recently gene marker analysis showed that the pollen parent instead of ‘Korobovka’ more likely is ‘White Transparent’ (in Latvian: ‘Baltais Dzidrais’). Such mistakes are no so uncommon in plant breeding – it takes only one stray bee to find access to the flower and carry with it the wrong pollen. ‘Korta’ is a favourite in Latvian home gardens, as its fruits are large, sweet and ripen very early. Branches with paler coloured fruits regularly appear in the tree crown of this variety. It means that the cultivar is a chimaera – some cell layers of the plant contain genes giving red fruit overcolour, but other cell layers are without these genes. Such varieties are unstable in propagation – you can obtain are with brightly coloured fruits or a tree with pale, barely striped fruits.