Variation of intergeneric somatic hybrids between Citrus sinensis cv Valencia and Fortunella crassifolia cv. Meiwa

Intergeneric somatic hybrid plants derived from protoplast fusion between Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck cv. Valencia and Fortunella crassifolia Swingle cv, Meiwa have been grown in the fields for 6 years. The plants grew less vigorously with uneven canopy size and some shoots frequently died. Chromosome count showed that the plants, containing non-tetraploid cells besides amphidiploid, were chimeras. Most somatic hybrid plants exhibited a new band of EST isozyme. RAPD analysis verified that several plants lacked some of the parents' markers. The results indicated that the intergeneric somatic hybrids were genetically unstable.