The new yellow-fleshed kiwifruit (Actinidia chinensis Pl.) 'Soreli': Conclusions from six years of cultivation in different climatic areas

'Soreli' (meaning "sun" in the local language) is a selection of tetraploid Actinidia chinensis developed at the University of Udine and released in 2008. The main characteristics are: heavy cropping, large fruit size, and yellow flesh color. We report in the present paper the results of six years of observation (2007- 2012) in three different locations from North to Southern-Italy. Budburst occurred 4-17 days before 'Hayward', with the earlier bud burst recorded in the South. Flowering time occurred almost constantly two weeks before 'Hayward', but in a range of dates encompassing up to three weeks in the different seasons and locations. Flowers were usually single. Fruit weight at harvest ranged from 85 to 147 g, according to location and season with the lowest values recorded in absence of artificial pollination. Orchards of the trial were not sprayed with plant growth regulators (PGR). Harvesting date, fixed by the protocol when fruit reached 8.0°Brix, ranged up to 25 days, with the extreme dates represented by September 23 and October 18. Soluble solid content averaged from 12.5 to 15.7, with erratic influence of location and season. Fruit quality, evaluated through a taste panel, was compared with two controls, 'Hayward' (green) and 'Jintao' (yellow) grown together with 'Soreli' in a single location. Authors discuss the marketing strategies that could be developed following the data on cropping and fruit quality of this new kiwifruit cultivar as observed in locations that greatly differed from each other for winter chilling unit accumulation, degree days, temperatures, rainfall and other climatic and soil parameters.