Selected nutmeg parent trees from nutmeg population in Bogor: Their fruit yield, essential oil content, and morphological characteristics

Abstract

Indonesia has been a long-time well known as high quality of nutmeg. Nutmeg is native to Indonesia, with an origin in the Maluku islands. Then, spread out and scattered into other parts of Indonesia. Bogor is one of the nutmeg production centers in West Java with a wide range of products. However, there have been no scientific studies that provide a complete picture of the genetic identity of Bogor Nutmeg. The research aimed to identify the main morphological character and fruit quality components for selecting candidates of selected parent trees of the Bogor population nutmeg, to be promoted as a new superior variety. Mass positive selection was used to identify established parent trees by observing the main morphological characters, production, and quality. Results confirmed that the selected parent tree of Bogor nutmeg had fulfilled the technical requirement as the candidate of new superior varieties for fruit yield (> 5000 grains/tree/year), essential oil content (>20%), and myristicin (>10%), which were varied according to the age of the fruit. The nutmeg population in Bogor is characterized by the size and shape of round or oval fruit, the size, and shape of lanceolate or oblong leaves.