🍇 Centennial Seedless

Centennial Seedless is a white seedless grape variety from the United States, belonging to the European species Vitis vinifera. It was bred by Harold Olmo (according to FPS, together with Albert Koyama) at the California Agricultural Experiment Station in Davis; Foundation Plant Services at the University of California (FPS) dates its release to 1980.

The parents are the variety Gold and the breeding line Olmo Q 25-6, itself a second-generation selection from the cross Emperor × Pirovano 75. This pedigree is the breeder's; it has not been checked with DNA markers. VIVC and FPS agree in placing the variety in two groups: table grape and raisin grape. In 1981 it received US plant patent No. 4784, which expired in 2000. FPS holds a registered selection, Centennial Seedless 01, from the university's foundation vineyard; it has HOLD status, a warning that distribution of the variety abroad may be restricted. According to the VIVC area table, it was grown in France (2 ha in 2000 and 10.5 ha in 2006) and Spain (2.48 ha in 1999). In different countries it is known as Davis 31-123 F, Centennial, Francesa, Sonja and Wuhe Baijixin.

Why it matters to you. If you see white seedless grapes called Centennial, this is Olmo's Californian variety, suitable both for the table and for drying into raisins. The HOLD status at FPS is a reminder that variety rights and the rules for exchanging planting material differ between countries. And the 11 collections that hold Centennial Seedless make it available to breeders looking for seedlessness.