Today I took the plunge and started several crosses with Black Cherry the male parent.
The reason for this cross is that I can't accomodate the growth habit of Black Cherry in my tiny space (and seems tinier all the time!). I love the fruit, but the number of fruit per linear yardage of plant growth is pretty low, and the hugeness of the vine is a problem in confined space. So I am trying to cross with a female parent with a more manageable and productive growth habit - the three I have available are Stupice, Moravsky Div, and the true determinate Fiaschetto a napoli (a small roma) - hoping to select for growth habit in the F2 early in the season, and look for the black fruited selections among the remaining, etc.
I followed the available videos to choose an immature blossom and remove the anther cones. I chose the leading blossom in unopened clusters, because these usually seem to have the best chance of forming fruit. A document from UC Davis said to pollinate right away, and again two days later - this seems to be a compromise position because other sources vary as to when the female part is ready to receive the pollen. So I guess I'll repeat that on wednesday and hope for the best.
I know there's been a lot of work with Black Cherry as a parent, so I'm wondering if these crosses (Stupice, Moravsky Div, Fiaschetto a napoli) have already been done before? and how that worked out. Also any experience breeding with Stupice or the others would be interesting to learn about.
I'm thinking of following Taryn's approach, and trying to grow out the F1's indoors during the winter so the F2 can be grown out next year (I can only try!). I've been searching for information about those growth habit traits, and so far it looks like Black Cherry's long internodes will be dominant, so the F1's will be space-hogs like their dad
.
Any general comments about your experience or advice in breeding for a compact indeterminate growth habit would be helpful... thanks!