Development, Management and Utilization of a Kiwifruit (Actinidia spp.) In Vitro Collection: A New Zealand Perspective

The New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research Limited (PFR) supports a large kiwifruit breeding program that includes more than twenty Actinidia species. Almost all the kiwifruit accessions are held as field collections across a range of locations, though not all plants are at multiple locations. An in vitro collection of kiwifruit in New Zealand was established upon the arrival of Pseudomonas syringae pv. Actinadiae-biovar 3 in 2010. The value of an in vitro collection has been emphasized by restrictions on importation of new plants into New Zealand and increasing awareness of the array of biotic and abiotic threats to field collections. The PFR in vitro collection currently holds about 450 genotypes from various species, mostly A. chinensis var. chinensis and A. chinensis var. deliciosa. These collections and the in vitro facilities are used for germplasm conservation, identification of disease-free plants, reference collections and making plants available to users. Management of such a diverse collection requires appropriate protocols, excellent documentation, training, sample tracking and databasing and true-to-type testing, as well as specialized facilities and resources. This review also discusses the New Zealand biosecurity and compliance regime governing kiwifruit plant movement, and how protocols employed by the facility aid the movement of pathogen-free plants within and from New Zealand.