Performance of Rutgers asparagus hybrids in New Zealand

Three polycross dioecious hybrid cultivars, 'REH 101', 'REH 103', and 'Rutgers Beacon' ('REH 106'), four single cross dioecious hybrids ('VLG2', 'W20 X 14', '44 × 14', and '56 × 14'), and blended seed lots of all-male hybrids derived from five female (F) plants ('47', '53', '56', 'Md 10', and 'G27') and two super male (MM) plants (22-8 and 14-4) were compared with the New Zealand standard open-pollinated asparagus cultivar 'Mary Washington 500W' ('MW 500W'). The all-male hybrids, 'Rutgers Beacon', and 'MW 500W' were grown at three sites - Levin, Lincoln, and Hastings. Remaining cultivars were grown at only one or two of the sites. Experiments were harvested for 3, 4, or 5 years. 'REH 101', 'Rutgers Beacon' (polycross), 'W20 × 14', '56 × 14' (dioecious), and the blended cultivars '47F', '53F' '56F', 'Md 10 F', and '22-8 MM' (all-male), all yielded higher than 'MW 500W' at one or more of the sites. Only the blended all-male lines '56F', 'Md10F', and '22-8MM' yielded much higher than 'MW 500W' at all three sites.