I asked Gemini to summarize, see below. Not intended for commercial production? Interesting, see: https://osfruits.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/OSF-white-paper_Farm-of-the-Future.pdf
This document is a *Draft Plant Pest Risk Assessment (PPRA)* prepared by the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) regarding a petition from the USDA-ARS for a determination of *nonregulated status* for a genetically engineered apple line known as *T1190*. *Key Overview* - *The Modification:* T1190 apples are engineered to express the BpMADS4 gene from silver birch (*Betula pendula*). - *Purpose:* This gene significantly reduces the "juvenile stage" of the apple tree, inducing *early and near-continuous flowering*. While typical apples take 5–12 years to flower, T1190 can begin flowering in less than 6 months. - *Intended Use:* The T1190 apple is not intended for commercial fruit production; instead, it is designed as a tool for *accelerated breeding programs* to speed up the development of new apple varieties. *Phenotypic Changes* - *Growth Habit:* Unlike standard upright apple trees, T1190 exhibits a *vine-like, spreading growth pattern* with slender, weak stems that require a trellis for support. - *Dormancy:* The trees lack normal winter dormancy and maintain photosynthetic activity during winter months, which decreases their freezing tolerance. - *Nutritional Needs:* Due to constant flowering and fruiting, these plants have exceptionally high nutritional requirements and require regular supplemental fertilization (specifically iron) to survive. *Risk Assessment Findings* APHIS concluded that T1190 apple is *unlikely to pose a greater plant pest risk* than non-modified apples based on several factors: - *Low Weediness Potential:* Because of its high nutritional demands, lack of dormancy, and vine-like structure, T1190 is unlikely to survive or establish in the wild without human intervention. - *Controlled Gene Flow:* While hybridization with wild crabapples is biologically possible, the resulting offspring would likely inherit the "fitness costs" (like high nutrient needs and lack of dormancy), making them uncompetitive in natural environments. - *Disease Susceptibility:* Although initial studies suggested a potential vulnerability to fire blight, subsequent research showed no significant increase in risk compared to non-modified apples. - *Nontarget Organisms:* No mechanisms were identified that would cause harm to beneficial insects or other organisms. *Conclusion* The assessment concludes that T1190 apple does not pose a plant pest risk and recommends that it should no longer be subject to the regulatory requirements of *7 CFR part 340*. ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Szylvian, Andrea M. <[email protected]> Date: Fri, Feb 13, 2026 at 11:05 AM Subject: FYI: USDA Seeks Public Comment on Petition to Deregulate Early Juvenile Blooming and Near-Continuous Blooming Apple Developed Using Genetic Engineering To: Elizabeth <[email protected]>, Jon Clements <[email protected]>, Glen Koehler <[email protected]> Hi –FYI. Apologies for repeat info. Beginning February 11, 2026, the public will have 60 days to review and comment on the petition. [image: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service] [image: Blooming Apple] <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinks-2.govdelivery.com%2FCL0%2Fhttps%3A%252F%252Fcontent.govdelivery.com%252Fattachments%252FUSDAAPHIS%252F2026%252F02%252F10%252Ffile_attachments%252F3549471%252Fblooming-apple.png%2F1%2F0101019c48fa1618-35ed9517-44e9-4329-8e56-3b8c95ecbe73-000000%2F0WAxIx4KQ3FiR5lmQL5Pb-RpeZTEQpSEQSWcF4m5BvE%3D444&data=05%7C02%7Cjon.clements%40umass.edu%7C6466d5b6fc8e4ec2e16008de6b19a159%7C7bd08b0b33954dc194bbd0b2e56a497f%7C0%7C0%7C639065955018996704%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=UbRbGohepzgck70k7Br3vEK84ixe76%2BCZxWGQZm0fZg%3D&reserved=0> USDA Seeks Public Comment on Petition to Deregulate Early Juvenile Blooming and Near-Continuous Blooming Apple Developed Using Genetic Engineering Contact: [email protected] <[email protected]> *Washington, D.C., February 10, 2026*—The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) invites public comment on a petition to deregulate an apple developed using genetic engineering. The apple variety produces early juvenile blooming and near continuous blooming. The public will have 60 days to review and comment on the petition and draft plant pest risk assessment (PPRA). Please submit scientific data, studies, or research to support your comments. Beginning February 11, 2026, members of the public can submit comments through April 13, 2026, on the petition and draft PPRA by going to www.regulations.gov <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinks-2.govdelivery.com%2FCL0%2Fhttps%3A%252F%252Fwww.regulations.gov%2F1%2F0101019c48fa1618-35ed9517-44e9-4329-8e56-3b8c95ecbe73-000000%2F35qJT4yoLylSys6edj_LwZrfmUSDVwMrOhKFlzKDOpo%3D444&data=05%7C02%7Cjon.clements%40umass.edu%7C6466d5b6fc8e4ec2e16008de6b19a159%7C7bd08b0b33954dc194bbd0b2e56a497f%7C0%7C0%7C639065955019022274%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=0EzpF83AI3v2rPPkypqAo7WBoFfHWUkVXKr4fkr9uro%3D&reserved=0> and entering “APHIS-2025-1066” into the search field. ------------------------------ [image: Bookmark and Share] <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinks-2.govdelivery.com%2FCL0%2Fhttps%3A%252F%252Fcontent.govdelivery.com%252Faccounts%252FUSDAAPHIS%252Fbulletins%252F40927c0%253Freqfrom%3Dshare%2F1%2F0101019c48fa1618-35ed9517-44e9-4329-8e56-3b8c95ecbe73-000000%2FC-rKmM_jaH_tuR8OO5cxJpZv2Q_YPwXP0HhL3dPKAlE%3D444&data=05%7C02%7Cjon.clements%40umass.edu%7C6466d5b6fc8e4ec2e16008de6b19a159%7C7bd08b0b33954dc194bbd0b2e56a497f%7C0%7C0%7C639065955019040638%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=7Vpxzl6AF9VX%2BKaWPMqfY4sZL4Jndg%2F48flcgIL2Lic%3D&reserved=0> Questions about APHIS programs and services? Contact Us <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinks-2.govdelivery.com%2FCL0%2Fhttps%3A%252F%252Fwww.aphis.usda.gov%252Faphis%252Fbanner%252Fcontactus%2F1%2F0101019c48fa1618-35ed9517-44e9-4329-8e56-3b8c95ecbe73-000000%2Fh-PoQdDdRjirYTQB98YzzxGK6gmRcuuRJc5UxYAq-7c%3D444&data=05%7C02%7Cjon.clements%40umass.edu%7C6466d5b6fc8e4ec2e16008de6b19a159%7C7bd08b0b33954dc194bbd0b2e56a497f%7C0%7C0%7C639065955019059128%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=d3Lrp9CebIHi95JSoYqQ6OErkcJXr7Udyoq%2B3mbtt0I%3D&reserved=0> STAY CONNECTED: [image: USDA blog] <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinks-2.govdelivery.com%2FCL0%2Fhttps%3A%252F%252Fwww.usda.gov%252Fabout-usda%252Fnews%252Fblog%2F1%2F0101019c48fa1618-35ed9517-44e9-4329-8e56-3b8c95ecbe73-000000%2FrNR21VOwfafn8CCkDStGMu5zWrGbNiMsPhsOo65Tt3o%3D444&data=05%7C02%7Cjon.clements%40umass.edu%7C6466d5b6fc8e4ec2e16008de6b19a159%7C7bd08b0b33954dc194bbd0b2e56a497f%7C0%7C0%7C639065955019082284%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=Rruuc9MwMQpwic6lxf94EtsF9BVpPLe7eKvU0sTLIt8%3D&reserved=0> [image: APHIS Facebook] <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinks-2.govdelivery.com%2FCL0%2Fhttps%3A%252F%252Fwww.facebook.com%252FUSDAAPHIS%2F1%2F0101019c48fa1618-35ed9517-44e9-4329-8e56-3b8c95ecbe73-000000%2FtAFJD3UDJmdm-4HUiq2pa4ea7pYWDkJ_wDE-lYdor0A%3D444&data=05%7C02%7Cjon.clements%40umass.edu%7C6466d5b6fc8e4ec2e16008de6b19a159%7C7bd08b0b33954dc194bbd0b2e56a497f%7C0%7C0%7C639065955019101576%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=1htn57k4vXj4fdioWAZvEMaq%2BY%2F%2FQyxtBDOdAM4CIi0%3D&reserved=0> [image: APHIS Twitter] <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinks-2.govdelivery.com%2FCL0%2Fhttp%3A%252F%252Ftwitter.com%252Fusda_aphis%2F1%2F0101019c48fa1618-35ed9517-44e9-4329-8e56-3b8c95ecbe73-000000%2FojyNM1ELXO5cdWq303LzAoXcRSY-TDyDCsBqzieqUFU%3D444&data=05%7C02%7Cjon.clements%40umass.edu%7C6466d5b6fc8e4ec2e16008de6b19a159%7C7bd08b0b33954dc194bbd0b2e56a497f%7C0%7C0%7C639065955019122839%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=1boD%2FIqxg%2B5zqDpUKwajtOYFfmrBRU57Gm38MKQ%2BdHY%3D&reserved=0> [image: APHIS YouTube] <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinks-2.govdelivery.com%2FCL0%2Fhttp%3A%252F%252Fwww.youtube.com%252Fuser%252FUSDAAPHIS%2F1%2F0101019c48fa1618-35ed9517-44e9-4329-8e56-3b8c95ecbe73-000000%2FNdkXzgjokwDlptZRTwbr4ntDd6peZukFfRxZ-Gg8eec%3D444&data=05%7C02%7Cjon.clements%40umass.edu%7C6466d5b6fc8e4ec2e16008de6b19a159%7C7bd08b0b33954dc194bbd0b2e56a497f%7C0%7C0%7C639065955019150364%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=1UuplWX9cQS1dRn7ddlE4UOM0ZKqBIl4AviXWf5vGwU%3D&reserved=0> [image: Sign up for email updates] <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinks-2.govdelivery.com%2FCL0%2Fhttp%3A%252F%252Fpublic.govdelivery.com%252Faccounts%252FUSDAAPHIS%252Fsubscribers%252Fnew%2F2%2F0101019c48fa1618-35ed9517-44e9-4329-8e56-3b8c95ecbe73-000000%2F0rvZQUA4LVZ5SWsqtx0ZfnuECALJvxmpGJ_C77xrT30%3D444&data=05%7C02%7Cjon.clements%40umass.edu%7C6466d5b6fc8e4ec2e16008de6b19a159%7C7bd08b0b33954dc194bbd0b2e56a497f%7C0%7C0%7C639065955019177482%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=9vdyb1pl%2BX%2BVLdCp5cwJFeKOzsKDOas4tymhcS7otIc%3D&reserved=0> [image: APHIS Flickr] <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinks-2.govdelivery.com%2FCL0%2Fhttps%3A%252F%252Fwww.flickr.com%252Fphotos%252Fusdagov%252Fcollections%252F72157625204032244%252F%2F1%2F0101019c48fa1618-35ed9517-44e9-4329-8e56-3b8c95ecbe73-000000%2FK-Q1KDTalU0vJqpSb4SnZHnbyGf0bHA5ihEV3aFBMPQ%3D444&data=05%7C02%7Cjon.clements%40umass.edu%7C6466d5b6fc8e4ec2e16008de6b19a159%7C7bd08b0b33954dc194bbd0b2e56a497f%7C0%7C0%7C639065955019200366%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=KNBQ5cNnaAUhGTa%2B%2FcsGOmqcCJUO532zH%2FoWdseWcT4%3D&reserved=0> SUBSCRIBER SERVICES: Manage Preferences <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinks-2.govdelivery.com%2FCL0%2Fhttps%3A%252F%252Fpublic.govdelivery.com%252Faccounts%252FUSDAAPHIS%252Fsubscriber%252Fedit%253Fpreferences%3Dtrue%2523tab1%2F1%2F0101019c48fa1618-35ed9517-44e9-4329-8e56-3b8c95ecbe73-000000%2FWK2hYZMrEA5kmuBk35FK0JBYtZUiQUCxVfdC5XGCaQ8%3D444&data=05%7C02%7Cjon.clements%40umass.edu%7C6466d5b6fc8e4ec2e16008de6b19a159%7C7bd08b0b33954dc194bbd0b2e56a497f%7C0%7C0%7C639065955019218933%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=2wmH1ywMnfeMEnZkywif973bPVDejRXK9KtlGGTS%2FKA%3D&reserved=0> | Unsubscribe <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinks-2.govdelivery.com%2FCL0%2Fhttps%3A%252F%252Fpublic.govdelivery.com%252Faccounts%252FUSDAAPHIS%252Fsubscriber%252Fone_click_unsubscribe%253Fverification%3D5.f34bca8ad2338fffd64f28445f77c011%2526destination%3Dszylvian.andrea%252540epa.gov%2F1%2F0101019c48fa1618-35ed9517-44e9-4329-8e56-3b8c95ecbe73-000000%2FAAgAG1H5CWtDwJx9gLD5ClDpyJrl8ZSZuYkeH9v7YJY%3D444&data=05%7C02%7Cjon.clements%40umass.edu%7C6466d5b6fc8e4ec2e16008de6b19a159%7C7bd08b0b33954dc194bbd0b2e56a497f%7C0%7C0%7C639065955019244517%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=ech7gBim30%2FS2oxdfWsBZTIQIG0VElVZdEMWkXMhQBQ%3D&reserved=0> | Help <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinks-2.govdelivery.com%2FCL0%2Fhttps%3A%252F%252Finsights.govdelivery.com%252FCommunications%252FSubscriber_Help_Center%2F1%2F0101019c48fa1618-35ed9517-44e9-4329-8e56-3b8c95ecbe73-000000%2FYXBiGtTUWGk7R_vpO7C4Dhlvmn7xGHkP-_41hliIQCI%3D444&data=05%7C02%7Cjon.clements%40umass.edu%7C6466d5b6fc8e4ec2e16008de6b19a159%7C7bd08b0b33954dc194bbd0b2e56a497f%7C0%7C0%7C639065955019272210%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=qophAeqftJO1JUDkeT2hY5YV7ZoQUQ9byp%2FRnTxieHc%3D&reserved=0> ------------------------------ -- Jon Clements Extension Tree Fruit Specialist University of Massachusetts Amherst UMass Cold Spring Orchard 393 Sabin Street Belchertown, MA. 01007 413-478-7219
-- apple-crop mailing list [email protected] https://lists.virtualorchard.com/mailman/listinfo/apple-crop Unsubscribe: [email protected]
