Genetic factors acting prior to dormancy in sour cherry influence bloom time the following spring

Bloom time is central to tree fruit production, and for Prunus species floral development leading up to bloom spans four seasons. Understanding this entire process is crucial for developing strategies to manipulate bloom time to prevent crop loss due to climate change. Here, we present a detailed examination of flower development from initiation until bloom for early- and late-blooming sour cherries ( Prunus cerasus ) from a population segregating for a major bloom time QTL on chromosome 4. Using a new staging system, we identified floral buds from early-blooming trees were persistently more advanced than those from late-blooming siblings. A gDNA coverage analysis revealed the late-blooming haplotype of this QTL, k, is located on a subgenome originating from the late-blooming P. fruticosa progenitor. Transcriptome analyses identified a large number of genes within this QTL as differentially expressed between early- and late-blooming trees during the vegetative-to-floral transition. From these, we identified candidate genes for the late bloom phenotype, including multiple transcription factors homologous to REproductive Meristem (REM) B3 domain-containing proteins. Additionally, we determined the basis of k in sour cherry is likely separate from candidate genes found in sweet cherry–suggesting several major regulators of bloom time are located on Prunus chromosome 4.