The Breadfruit Germplasm Collection at the University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus

By Laura B. Roberts-Nkrumah

“This book is a report on the major effort made to establish a breadfruit germplasm collection at the University of the West Indies, at St Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago, and to describe each cultivar in the collection. Cultivars are from the Pacific islands and the Caribbean. This effort is highly commendable because breadfruit, among its various attributes, can be a valuable and staple source of food, yet information on this tree crop is sparse. This is not surprising as it takes several years to collect reliable data on tree crops, and breadfruit has been a neglected, underutilized crop.

“As with any other crop, certain breadfruit cultivars grow better under some environmental conditions, are more resistant to pests and diseases, and are more suitable for various types of processing, than other cultivars. The detailed descriptions of the morphology and other characteristics made by Laura Roberts- Nkrumah are essential steps for identifying and selecting suitable cultivars for the desired purpose – for use as fresh or frozen food, for processing into flour or chips, for soil conservation and so on.

“This book is useful in making any Ministry of Agriculture in the tropics, other agricultural-related organizations and institutions, and individuals aware of the diverse characteristics of breadfruit and thus select cultivars which are suitable for the intended purpose. In addition, if persons would like to have already-established cultivars identified, until DNA profiles are available, this book explains how relevant measurements can be taken, and observations made, which can then be submitted to the author for identification of the cultivar. The clearly described methods and the accompanying high-quality photographs greatly facilitate the collection of the data.”

—Phyllis L. Coates-Beckford, Professor Emeritus of Plant Pathology, the University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica.

• Language: English
• Publisher: The University of the West Indies Press
• Release date: Dec 31, 2018
• ISBN: 9789766406868

Laura B. Roberts-Nkrumah

LAURA B. ROBERTS-NKRUMAH is Senior Lecturer in Crop Production, Department of Food Production, Faculty of Food and Agriculture, the University of the West Indies, St Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago.

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The University of the West Indies Press

7A Gibraltar Hall Road, Mona

Kingston 7, Jamaica

www.uwipress.com

© 2018 Laura B. Roberts-Nkrumah

All rights reserved. Published 2018

A catalogue record of this book is available from the

National Library of Jamaica.

ISBN: 978-976-640-684-4 (print)

978-976-640-685-1 (Kindle)

978-976-640-686-8 (ePub)

Cover design by Gyasi Nkrumah

Book design by Robert Harris

Set in Minion Pro 11/15

Printed in the United States of America

The University of the West Indies Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party Internet websites referred to in this publication and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

WITH DEEP GRATITUDE TO MY PARENTS,

CLAUDIUS AND MILDRED ROBERTS; MY HUSBAND, MABRAK;

AND OUR CHILDREN, NEHANDA AND GYASI

CONTENTS

List of Tables

List of Plates

Preface

Acknowledgements

List of Abbreviations

1.0 Introduction

1.1 Breadfruit: A neglected and underutilized crop

1.2 Nomenclature

1.3 Origin

1.4 Distribution

1.5 Status

1.6 Uses

1.7 Potential for commercialization

2.0 Breadfruit Morphology, Environmental Requirements and Production Systems

2.1 Vegetative morphology

2.2 Reproductive morphology

2.3 Environmental requirements

2.4 Production systems

3.0 Breadfruit Germplasm Diversity and History of Collection and Description

3.1 Germplasm diversity

3.2 Collection

3.3 Description

4.0 Breadfruit Collection and Description at the University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus

4.1 Breadfruit Germplasm Collection at the UWI: Rationale and objectives

4.2 Germplasm collection and the establishment and maintenance of the BGC

4.3 Description: Characterization and evaluation

4.3.1 Characterization descriptors

4.3.2 Evaluation descriptors

5.0 Characterization and Evaluation of Caribbean and Pacific Accessions

6.0 Using Breadfruit Germplasm Descriptors

6.1 The approach to using the descriptors

6.2 Using descriptors for cultivar identification

6.2.1 Tree descriptors

6.2.2 Leaf descriptors

6.2.3 Inflorescence descriptors

6.2.4 Fruit descriptors

6.3 Using descriptors for cultivar selection for production

6.3.1 Tree descriptors

6.3.2 Productivity descriptors

6.3.3 Utilization descriptors

6.4 Conclusion

Glossary

References

Index

TABLES

Table 4.1. Breadfruit accessions in the BGC

Table 4.2. Descriptors used to characterize and evaluate accessions in the BGC

Table 5.1. Macronutrient composition of flour from mature fruits of selected breadfruit cultivars in the BGC

Table 6.1. Summary of selected tree and leaf descriptors for breadfruit cultivars

Table 6.2. Summary of male and female inflorescence descriptors for breadfruit cultivars

Table 6.3. Summary of mature fruit descriptors for breadfruit cultivars

Table 6.4. Summary of productivity descriptors for breadfruit cultivars

Table 6.5. Summary of utilization descriptors for breadfruit cultivars

PLATES

Plate 4.1. Breadfruit tree shapes

Plate 4.2. Breadfruit leaves – variations in shape and lobing

Plate 4.3. Breadfruit male inflorescences – variations in shape

Plate 4.4. Breadfruit and chataigne female inflorescences

Plate 4.5. Breadfruit fruits – variations in shape

Plate 4.6. Breadfruit fruits – variations in skin texture

Plate 5.1. ‘Yellow’ (TT) – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.2. ‘White’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.3. Chataigne – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.4. ‘Kashee Bread’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.5. ‘Hog Pen’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.6. ‘Hope Marble’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.7. ‘Coco Bread’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.8. ‘Creole’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.9. ‘Macca’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.10. ‘Yellow Heart’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.11. ‘St Kitts’ (‘Timor’) – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.12. ‘Cassava’ (‘Timor’) – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.13. ‘Fafai’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.14. ‘Tapeha’a’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.15. ‘Otea’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.16. ‘A’arue’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.17. ‘Afara’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.18. ‘Mahani’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.19. ‘Ahani’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.20. ‘Pu’upu’u’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.21. ‘Porohiti’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.22. ‘Roiha’a’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.23. ‘Pua’a’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.24. ‘Toneno’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.25. ‘Yellow’ (Seychelles) – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.26. ‘Ma’afala’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.27. ‘Momolega’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.28. ‘Puou’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.29. ‘Ulu tala’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.30. ‘Ulu’ea’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.31. ‘Mei tehid’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.32. ‘Unk (Pii piia)’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.33. ‘Unk (Huehue)’ – leaf and fruit

Plate 5.34. ‘Mein padahk’ – leaf and fruit

PREFACE

Food and nutrition security is a critical concern in most developing countries in the tropics in spite of the availability of a wide range of plant species used for food. One of the major challenges that has stymied the development of agriculture for contribution to food security in these countries is the paucity of information on most tropical food crop species. Underlying this constraint is very limited sustained research and documentation on crops that are considered of minor economic importance. Such crops are usually not traded internationally, and if they are, the quantities traded are insufficient for them to be significant foreign exchange earners. If they are sold on local markets, marketing arrangements are typically informal and their value chains underdeveloped. Such plant species are referred to as neglected and underutilized species (NUS).

One such NUS is breadfruit, a traditional carbohydrate staple in the Pacific and the Caribbean, which has declined considerably in importance while the consumption of imported food has increased. However, benefits such as its significant nutritional value, versatility in methods of preparation and high productivity substantiate breadfruit’s considerable potential as a crop for sustainable food and nutrition security. Other significant advantages include its complementarity with other crops in farming systems in the humid tropics and its contribution to environmental conservation through the soil cover and recycled nutrients provided by the tree canopy and leaf litter, respectively. In recognition of this potential and the increasing erosion of its genetic diversity, breadfruit was identified among those tropical food crop species for conservation for food and agriculture under the International Treaty for Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. In reality, however, germplasm conservation is more likely to be achieved by increased demand for the crop and its by-products.

Except for the Pacific, where hundreds of cultivars exist, in all other breadfruit-producing regions fewer than ten and, most commonly, only one or two cultivars are grown or recognized. Within the Caribbean, a limited range of germplasm is considered a fundamental deficiency for addressing identified obstacles to commercialization for food security, such as the significant height of the trees, their seasonal bearing and the short shelf life of the fruits. Furthermore, the existing cultivars have not been described. To minimize these gaps, research has been undertaken at the University of the West Indies, St Augustine campus, in collaboration with other organizations, to collect germplasm existing in Trinidad and Tobago, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Jamaica in the Caribbean, to introduce additional germplasm, and to characterize and evaluate the accessions.

The objective of this publication is to promote sustainable commercial production and increased utilization of breadfruit for food and nutrition security in the Caribbean and throughout tropical areas with similar environmental conditions by providing information on breadfruit germplasm at the UWI. This information covers the description of thirty-three named breadfruit accessions consisting of eleven accessions from the Caribbean and twenty-two from the breadfruit germplasm collection at the National Tropical Garden in Hawaii, United States, and of its close ancestor, chataigne, or breadnut, using characterization and evaluation descriptors to assist in cultivar identification and the selection of suitable cultivars for cultivation and utilization for various purposes.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This book represents the contributions of many persons and organizations to breadfruit research in the Caribbean. I cannot mention all of them, but I am deeply grateful to all. I wish to express sincere appreciation to Dr Theodore Ferguson, former head of the Department of Crop Science, whose writing stimulated my interest in the potential of breadfruit as a food crop, and to Professor Lawrence Wilson, former dean of the Faculty of Agriculture at the UWI, who strongly supported my efforts to secure funding for research. I gratefully acknowledge the generous funding and support provided by the Jamaica Agricultural Development Foundation to collect germplasm in Jamaica and the United States and to establish the germplasm collection, and the contributions of Dr Lyndon McLaren and Dr George Wilson, in particular.

I sincerely thank Dr Robert J. Knights Jr, formerly of the US Department of Agriculture, for guidance on germplasm collection and Mrs Julia Morton, formerly of the Morton Collectanea, who provided accommodation in Florida, United States, and valuable literature during my preparation for the exercise. I am deeply thankful to the germplasm donors and the institutions that provided logistical support. These included farmers and homeowners in Trinidad and Tobago, St Vincent and the Grenadines and Jamaica; the Rural Agricultural Development Agency, Jamaica, especially Mr Phillip Chung, former senior director of the Division of Technology, Training and Technical Information; and the Ministry of Agriculture, St Vincent and the Grenadines, especially Mr Philmore Isaacs, former director of Agriculture. I am also deeply grateful to the National Tropical Botanical Garden, Hawaii, United States, which contributed the Pacific germplasm, and especially to Dr William Theobald, former director, and to Dr Diane Ragone, director of the Breadfruit Institute for literature and for clarifying the names of some of the Pacific accessions. Ultimately, I extend deep appreciation to the people of the Pacific who have generously shared this crop with the Caribbean since the eighteenth century.

This long-term research project could not have been undertaken without the sustained support of the UWI. I wish to acknowledge with deep gratitude the Department of Food Production, and in particular the sterling contribution from research technicians Messrs Patrick Ragoo, Ericsson Budhoo and Ohma Randhany in the establishment and maintenance of the germplasm collection and in data collection. Thanks are also due to the Office of Research and Graduate Studies for Campus Research and Publication Grants for description studies and the publication of this book and to Mr Terry Sampson for his assistance with photography. I am also grateful to the undergraduate and postgraduate students who participated in various studies and to the Ministry of Food Production of the Government of Trinidad and Tobago for providing on-the-job trainees for research assistance. I am most grateful to the UWI for granting me sabbatical leave to complete this book.

I thank Professor E. Julian Duncan for making helpful suggestions on the first draft, Mrs Maureen Henry for her editorial services and Mrs Andrea Houston-Charleau for formatting the manuscript and, most of all, for her continuous enthusiasm and encouragement. I also wish to thank the reviewers and the University Press for their professional advice and support to improve the quality of the book, as well as Professor Emerita Phyllis Coates-Beckford for her willingness to provide a review of the book for the cover.

I cannot thank my husband, Mabrak, and children, Nehanda and Gyasi, enough for their years of sacrificial support, including accompanying me on several trips throughout the Caribbean to collect information on breadfruit and germplasm materials. Special thanks to Mabrak for his helpful comments on various drafts of the manuscript and to Gyasi for editing the photographs and for the cover design.

For all these blessings and for the favour, guidance and strength to maintain the passion for this work and to prepare this book, I thank Almighty God.

ABBREVIATIONS

BGC Breadfruit Germplasm Collection

BIP/JARP Breadfruit Improvement Project/Jamaica Agricultural Research Programme

NUS neglected and underutilized species

NTBG National Tropical Botanical Garden

RHS Royal Horticultural Society

UWI University of the West Indies

1.0 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Breadfruit: A neglected and underutilized crop

Among the many food species introduced to the Caribbean, breadfruit is unique as a multipurpose tree species that produces a starchy food. Although in the past it was appreciated throughout the region as a low-cost staple, consumption has declined considerably, and its other uses are less well known. Breadfruit is widely grown throughout the tropics but, even in the Pacific, where it has been grown for several millennia and the greatest genetic diversity is present, its significant potential to contribute