This work had as objective to evaluate the fruit set, fruit weight and diameter and amount of normal and atypical seeds of two apple rootstocks in both open and artificial pollination conditions. Crosses among 'Marubakaido' (Malus prunifolia Borkh.) and 'M.9' (Malus pumila Mill) and reciprocal were performed at Estação Experimental de São Joaquim -- EPAGRI/SC. 'Marubakaido' required least cool temperatures to blooming and kept longer than M.9 cultivar. The percentage of effective fruit set when 'M.9' were used as female was 26% and 32% and when it was used as pollen donor, 5% e 25%, in 1999 and 2000, respectively. The cross 'M.9' X 'Marubakaido' produced deformed fruits, with a higher number of atypical seeds, in comparison with the open pollination system. The same results did not occurred in the reciprocal cross. The 'M.9' fruit weight and diameter were larger in the artificial crosses than in those produced by open pollination. No differences among pollination systems for the same variables were found in 'Marubakaido'. In addition, orthogonal contrast analyses revealed significant F values for number of normal seeds, number of atypical seeds when pollination systems in 'M.9' were compared.
Breeding and genetics; pollination; Malus pumila; Malus prunifolia
