Amara
Date: 2021-03-17, updated: 2023-01-17
First thornless primocane-fruiting blackberry variety from Chile, South America
Rubus subgenus Rubus 'Amara'
Originated from a cross of APF-77 x A-2293T
Variety denomination 'Amara', tested as HFM-2
Plants are thornless
Bushes have erect canes
Fruit weight is 6 g
Berries have a conical shape
Soluble solids - 10.9%
Acidity - 0.9%
Fruiting habit primocane-fruiting (everbearing)
Flowering on floricanes starts in the second week of April
Ripening date (regular) - fourth week of June
Blooming on primocanes starts in the first week of July
Ripening date (remontant) - first week of August
Productivity is 3 kg per plant
Cold hardiness is low
Country of origin Chile
Patent US PP26,413 P3 dated February 14, 2016
Current status - modern or widely used
Plants of Amara have good vegetative vigor and an erect grown habit. New primocanes emerge mainly from the crown and also as suckers from the roots. The growth rate is medium, with primocanes reaching 40 cm in height within 60 days from emergence. Productivity is medium low in the first (primocane crop), but yields are high with each successive floricane and primocane crop cycle. Yields on the first primocane fruiting cycle of a newly planted field are between 0.7 to 1.0 kg per linear meter of row. The floricane's yield is about 2.5 kg of fruit per meter row and the primocane crops (not including the first primocane crop) are between 2.5 and 3.0 kg per meter row.
The fruit of Amara are medium to large sized (about 6-7 g), very firm, very sweet and with very good flavor. They have good black color which is uniform and glossy. The fruits have a low rate of regression to red drupelets in post harvest storage.
Average first ripe date for primocanes is very similar to other thornless primocane-fruiting cultivar from Arkansas Prime-Jan. Dates of bloom in Southern Hemisphere are 25th of December (10% bloom), 5th of January (50% bloom), 3nd week of January (last bloom). The primocane harvest lasts for approximately 30 days.
For floricanes average first ripe date is approximately 20 days before Navaho. Dates of bloom in Southern Hemisphere are 12th of October (10% bloom), 25th of October (50% bloom), last week of October (last bloom). The floricane harvest lasts for about 30 days.
Ultimate cold hardiness is unknown, but in Chile dormant plants have resisted midwinter lows of -7 C without damage.