'FHIA-01'

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'FHIA-01' is a synthetic hybrid dessert banana that was released by FHIA in 1988.  It was developed from a Dwarf Pome and another synthetic hybrid.  'FHIA-01' plants are cold- and wind-tolerant and produce higher quality fruits in sub-tropical, than tropical, conditions.  'FHIA-01' is tolerant/resistant to Fusarium wilt and black leaf streak (black Sigatoka) and susceptible to Sigatoka leaf spot (yellow Sigatoka) and nematodes.  'FHIA-01' has been widely distributed for subsistence and commercial cultivation.  In Australia, 'FHIA-01' has been marketed under the name 'Goldfinger'.

Local names

'Goldfinger' (Australia). 'Maravilha' (Brazil)1

History of cultivation and current distribution

'FHIA-01' was released by FHIA in 1988 as part of their programme to breed bananas with increased tolerance/resistance to major pests and diseases 2 3 .  The female parent was a ‘Dwarf Brazilian/Dwarf Apple’ type (AAB, Pome subgroup) and the male parent was 'SH-3142', an advanced cultivar (genome group AA) also produced by FHIA4 5 .  'FHIA-01' was one of the first synthetic hybrids to be widely distributed to more than 50 tropical and sub-tropical countries for subsistence and commercial cultivation after it demonstrated tolerance to Fusarium wilt and high agronomic performance during the International Musa Testing Programme phase 16 7 8 .  'FHIA-01' was released for commercial cultivation in Australia in 1995 under the name of 'Goldfinger'9 .

Morphological characteristics

'FHIA-01' plants grow to around 2.5 m tall and the pseudostem is shiny and green to light-green with many dark brown blotches10 .  The leaves are slightly drooping2 9 and unblemished5 .  The leaves remain quite green during the winter in southern Queensland, Australia, and this is a characteristic of some cultivars that are tolerant to Fusarium wilt9 .  The bunch hangs at a slight angle and is asymmetric{10 .  The rachis is bare5 .  The male bud is short and heart-shaped with distinctive wide shoulders and revolute (rolling) bracts that lift one at a time10 9 .

Agronomic characteristics

'FHIA-01' plants are cold-tolerant and produce better quality fruit in sub-tropical than tropical conditions6 11 .  Because of their small stature they are considered to be wind-tolerant5 .  The finger length is considered to be extra large by Cavendish standards9 . 

Days from planting to flowering: 11 months12 , 11.3 and 11.6 months13 , 26814

Days from harvesting motherplant to flowering of the ratoon: 15614

Days from flowering to harvest: 13315

Days from planting to harvest: 39014 , 13.6 and 14.4 months9 , 14.6, 15.1 and 15.3 months13

Days from harvesting motherplant to harvest of the ratoon: 26514

Height at shooting (cm): 21112 , 239 and 24514 , 274 and 2759

Height at harvest (cm): 239, 245 and 254{13

Height of tallest sucker (cm): 122 and 17313

Number of suckers: 4.3, 4.8 and 5.113

Girth at shooting: 6212 , 73 and 7714

Functional leaves at shooting: 10 and 10.714

Total leaves at shooting: 10.2 and 10.814 , 13.3, 13.4 and 13.713

Mean bunch weight (kg): 26.212 , 33.9, 34.3 and 36.99

Number of hands: 7.3 and 813

Total number of fruits: 99.3, 105.3 and 108{13 , 12014

Number of fruits on hand:

Finger length (cm): 19.112 , 24, 25.5 and 26.49

Finger girth (cm): 14.315

Finger weight (g): 121.715

Yield (t/ha): 20.516 , 34.912 , 33.1, 40.1 and 40.213 , 38.6 and 49.69

Productivity index (100 x (bunch weight (in kg)/cycling time in days)): 1.317

Peel (total waste from a whole finger, %): 4415

Shelf life (days): 7.615

Reaction to diseases and pests

Fungal diseases

Fusarium wilt (Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense)

'FHIA-01' has been classified as susceptible but highly tolerant18 and as resistant19 20 12 21 2 5 22 to Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense races 1, 2 and 4.

Black leaf streak / black Sigatoka (Mycosphaerella fijiensis)

'FHIA-01' has been classified as resistant to Mycosphaerella fijiensis14 23 . However, breakdown of resistance was observed in Samoa in 200624 .

Sigatoka leaf spot / yellow Sigatoka (Mycosphaerella musicola)

'FHIA-01' has been classified as both resistant16 and susceptible6 to Mycosphaerella musicola.  During field evaluation trials in Australia for Fusarium wilt, though in field unsprayed for leaf diseases, 'FHIA-01' developed very few symptoms of 'yellow Sigatoka' leaf spot25 .

Eumusae leaf spot (Mycosphaerella eumusae)

'FHIA-01' has been classified as susceptible to Mycosphaerella eumusae but this can be controlled by regular de-leafing9 .

Crown rot

'FHIA-01' has been classified as resistant to crown rot14 5 .

Bacterial diseases

'FHIA-01' does not seem to have been evaluated for its tolerance to weevils.

Viral diseases

Bunchy top (Banana bunchy top virus)

'FHIA-01' has been classified as highly susceptible to Banana bunchy top virus9 .

Nematodes

Burrowing nematode (Radopholus similis)

'FHIA-01' plants have demonstrated varying levels of susceptibility to the burrowing nematode R. similis. In one study, plantlets derived from tissue-culture material were as susceptible as the susceptible reference genotypes Grande Naine or Highgate whilst plants grown from corms were less susceptible than the susceptible reference genotypes but not as resistant as the resistant reference genotypes SH-3142 and Yangambi Km526 .  In another study, tissue-culture plantlets inoculated after they were 28 weeks old were resistant to R. similis, had fewer nematodes per unit weight three weeks after inoculation than Cavendish plants and were more tolerant than Cavendish plants when supporting the same number of nematodes27 .  In a further study using tissue-culture derived plantlets planted in pots in greenhouse conditions, 'FHIA-01' plants were moderately susceptible to R. similis28 .

Lesion nematode (Pratylenchus spp.)

'FHIA-01' has been classified as moderately susceptible to Pratylenchus spp. (4,848 nematodes per 100 g root) when tissue-culture plantlets were grown in pots28 .

Root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne spp.)

'FHIA-01' has been classified as susceptible to Meloidogyne spp. (41,352 nematodes per 100 g root) when tissue-culture plantlets were grown in pots28 .

Spiral nematode (Helicotylenchus multicinctus)

'FHIA-01' has been classified as susceptible to Helicotylenchus multicinctus (1,577 nematodes per 100 g root) when tissue-culture plantlets were grown in pots28 .

Weevils

'FHIA-01' does not seem to have been evaluated for its tolerance to weevils.

Reaction to abiotic stress

'FHIA-01' does not seem to have been evaluated for its tolerance to drought or other abiotic stresses.

Recommendations for cultivation, harvest, post-harvest

FHIA recommends that 'FHIA-01' be cultivated under the following conditions2 :

Altitude: 0 – 1400 m

Rainfall: 2,000 mm/year well distributed throughout the year

Temperature: optimum of 28 °C, though is cold-tolerant and able to grow at lower temperatures than the more commonly grown Cavendish varieties

Soil: unflooded, well-drained

Planting density: 1,600 plants/ha recommended

Fertilizer inputs: in Honduras, applied 300 kg/year nitrogen (N), 250 kg/year potassium (K).  'FHIA-01' plants are able to produce high yields with minimal inputs of fertiliser (pers. comms. Jeff Daniells, 2013) and are therefore recommended for cultivation in organic or subsistence conditions.

Pesticide inputs: because 'FHIA-01' is tolerant/resistant to many of the pests and diseases that affect bananas (see ‘reaction to diseases and pests’ section) it can be grown without the application of pesticides.

Management advice: remove infected tips every four weeks (de-leaf).  Remove young shoots every eight weeks (de-sucker). 

'FHIA-01' hands mature sequentially and can be harvested one at a time2 .  To avoid the fruits arriving to consumers in an over-ripe, soft condition the hands or the whole bunch should be harvested when they are in a hard green condition29 .  The fruits have a green life of approximately 27 days when kept at 20°C.  Fruits ripened at 16°C with 96 % relative humidity and 1 ppm ethylene (trickle) had good appearance and colour.  The shelf life of ripe fruits is approximately 8 days when kept at 20°C.  The fruits only obtain a high sugar content once the peel is a bright yellow colour29 .

Uses

'FHIA-01' is a dessert banana that is mostly eaten raw when ripe.  The ripe fruit has a sweet-acid, apple flavour that is similar to the mother plant2 5 . The cut fruit does not turn black upon exposure to the air and so is good to use in salads2 .

References

See also on this website

External links