December 2020 - 29

branches interfered with the machine,
causing it to uproot the plant. We also
found that fruit setting slightly higher
on the plant and also detaching from
the plant with less force contributed
to a cleaner mechanical pick. "
Fixing these traits in Odyssey
resulted in higher mechanically
harvested yield, with significantly
less fruit loss in the field, compared
to standard commercial green chile
varieties.
While this plant architecture helps
the harvest efficiency of the plant,
Walker said another really exciting
thing about the Odyssey variety is
the de-stemming - pedicel removal -
efficiency of the fruit.
" For green chile processing, we
needed the pedicel - stem and
calyx - to come off the fruit easier
and cleaner, " she said. " Often when
you pull the pedicel off of other
varieties, you might either break it
and partially leave it on the fruit, or
you break the chile fruit. "
Pedicels perfectly detached from
Odyssey fruit 68% of the time as
opposed to 34% for AZ 1904 and
24% for NuMex Joe E. Parker.
" In a processing plant
where you are getting
thousands of pounds of
chile through the system,
you have to remove the
stem, or otherwise it
creates woody material in
the processed food. "
− Stephanie Walker, New
Mexico State University
" With Odyssey, we get very good,
clean breaks, " she said. " This will
also help hand-harvesting. "
Pedicel removal is very important
for the quality of commercial
processed green chile.
" In a processing plant where you
are getting thousands of pounds of
chile through the system, you have
to remove the stem, or otherwise
it creates woody material in the
processed food, " said Walker, who
began her work with chile as a
quality control supervisor in a
processing plant.
" Currently, with the 100 percent
hand-harvest system, the people
actually remove the pedicel out in
the field, " she said. " When it doesn't
come off easily, they sometimes
break the fruit which causes yield
and quality loss. "
Ultimately, how does Odyssey
taste? After taking a bite from the
green chile pod, Walker declared,
" Delicious New Mexico chile
flavor, although very mild. " The
new variety's heat factor averages
between 300 and 400 Scoville units.
For a complete list of chile
developed by NMSU, visit
aces.nmsu.edu/pubs/research/
horticulture/RR792/. VGN
Stokes Seeds Trial Evaluation
Researching the best for our customers since 1881.
NIGHTHAWK
68 days. An early maturing
hybrid with excellent eating
quality, good tip fill, and husk
cover on a nice sized ear.
Well adapted for early local
and roadside market in the
Northeast and Midwest.
SYBARIS
56 days. Straight medium sized
100% 3-4 sieve size deep green
pods. Uniform high quality
Valentino type that sets pods
high on the plant. PVP
The Odyssey chile pepper has a cleaner pedicel removal to for both hand harvest and mechanical harvest.
TARPON
PHARAOH
Main season hybrid with
compact plant and dark green,
smooth blocky fruits. Featuring
X10R technology and improved
resistance to Phytophthora for
the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic
and Midwest.
59 days. Sybaris type, 5.75 in/
15 cm long, with darker green
color, with mostly 4 sieve size.
Upright plant that harvest
cleanly and the majority of the
pods (approx. 80%) retain their
peduncles. High yields. HR:
Rust Race Ua:38.
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December 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of December 2020