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`Norman' peach [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] trees were trained to the central-leader or open-vase form and were planted at high (740 trees/ha), or low (370 trees/ha) density. A third density treatment was a HIGH → LOW density, where alternate trees in high-density plots were removed after 6 years to produce a low-density treatment. From 3 to 5 years after planting, trunk cross-sectional areas (TCA) increased most for low-density trees. After 9 years, TCA was greatest for low-density and least for high-density trees. Because of differences in tree training, central-leader trees were taller than open-vase trees and tree spread was greater for low-density than for high-density trees. Annual yield per hectare was 15% to 40% greater for high-density treatments than for low-density treatments, but tree form had little influence on yield. Average fruit weight tended to be greater for low-density than for high-density treatments, but cumulative marketable yield was greatest for high-density and lowest for HIGH → LOW treatments. Income minus costs for 9 years was nearly $4200/ha higher, and net present value was about $2200/ha higher, for open-vase than for central-leader trees (P = 0.08). Cumulative net present value for the 9 years was about $2660/ha higher for high-than for low-density trees (P = 0.36).
In 1993 a factorial experiment, involving nine apple cultivars on M.9 root-stock and six fungicide regimes, was established. The cultivars included `Delicious', `Golden Delicious', `York Imperial', `Redfree', `Freedom', `Liberty', NY 74828-12, NY 73334-35, and NY 74840-1. The fungicide treatments included earlyseason sprays of Bayleton or Dodine, separately or combined, and late-season sprays of Captan plus Benomyl alone or combined with early-season sprays of Bayleton plus Dodine. Non-sprayed trees served as a control. In 1995 leaves and fruits were evaluated for disease symptoms. Leaf spot (symptoms caused by black rot or alternaria leaf blotch) was most severe on `Redfree' and NY 73334-35, and least severe on `Delicious', `Golden Delicious', and `York'. By late summer NY 74828-12 had the most leaf abscission, whereas NY 74840-1, `Liberty', and `Delicious' lost the fewest leaves. Early-season fungicide sprays did not reduce early leaf abscission. Sooty blotch and fly speck, but not rots, were nearly eliminated by late-season applications of Captan plus Benomyl. Averaged over all fungicide treatments, more than half of the fruits from `Delicious', `Redfree', and NY 74828-12 were free of disease symptoms. Cultivars with <25% of the fruits without infection included `York', `Liberty', NY 74840-1 and NY 73334-35. `York' and `Redfree' had >25% of the fruits with rots, while all other cultivars had <9% fruits with rots. `Delicious' and NY 73334-35 had the fewest rotten fruits. Rots were not controlled by any fungicide treatment. `Liberty' and NY 73334-35 had the most flyspeck and `Redfree' had the least. `Liberty', NY 74840-1 and NY 73334-35 had the most sooty blotch and `Redfree' and NY 74828-12 had the least.
`Redhaven' peach [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] trees were shaded to five light levels [100%, 45%, 23%, 17%, and 9% photosynthetic photon flux (PPF)] for four different periods. Net photosynthesis (Pn), measured under the various shade levels, increased nonlinearly with increasing percent PPF. After 18 days of shading, specific leaf weight (SLW) was positively and linearly related to percent PPF. After shade removal, Pn and SLW returned to control levels in 26 and 4 days, respectively. Flower density was positively related to percent PPF when trees were shaded from 16 June to 4 July or 4-31 July, but not from 31 July to 30 Sept. of the previous year.
The relationship between peach [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] fruit position and fruit weight (FW) was studied in experiments involving thinned vs. nonthinned fruiting shoots, shoots with and without axillary shoots, and trees with varying crop densities (CDs). FW was not consistently related to position on the shoot, and the influence of fruit position varied depending on the presence of axillary shoots on the fruiting shoot. FW was best related to fruiting shoot length and total shoot length per fruit (1-year-old plus current-season wood). Mean FW was also influenced by the number of fruit per shoot × CD interaction, a result indicating that FW depends on photosynthate from leaves in the immediate vicinity of the fruit as well as photosynthate from more distant parts of the tree.
Twenty-eight-year-old `Starkrimson Delicious' and 10-year-old `Fullred Delicious' apple (Malus domestics Borkh.) trees were spur-pruned in 1986 and 1987 and/or treated with 500 mg BA + GA4+7/liter in 1986 in an attempt to improve spur growth and increase fruit weight. All treatment combinations generally failed to improve yield or fruit size. BA + GA4+7 reduced yield and fruit weight and increased the number of pygmy fruit in 1986, but had little effect on fruiting or vegetative growth for 3 years after treatment. Spur-pruning reduced spur density in 1986 and 1987 and increased yield, but not fruit weight, in 1987. Although spur-pruning improved spur length, spur bud diameter, leaf area per spur, and leaf dry weight per spur, fruit weight was not improved. Chemical names used: N-(phenylmethyl)-1H -purine-6-amine [benzyladenine (BA)]; gibberellin (GA4+7).
Abstract
Various chemicals were applied to whole-tree, quarter-tree, or single-limb units to determine their efficacy for delaying apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) fruit abscission. NAA and the herbicides fenoprop, dicamba, triclopyr, lontrel, fluroxypyr, and chloroxuron delayed fruit abscission. Benzoic acid, calcium acetate; the growth regulators lactidichlor ethyl, mefluidide, BA, GA4+7, and chlormequat; and the herbicides pronamide, pendimethalin, chloramben, and DCPA did not delay fruit abscission. Chemical names used: benzoic acid,3,6-dichloro-2-methoxy,2-ethoxy, 1-methyl,2-oxoethylester (lactidichlor ethyl); 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA); N-(phenylmethyl)-1H-purin-6-amine (BA); gibberellin (GA4+7); N-[2,4-dimethyl-5-[[(trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl]amino] phenyl]acetamide (mefluidide); 3,5-dichloro(N-1,1-dimethyl-2-propynyl)benzamide (pronamide); N-(1-ethylpropyl)-3,4-dimethyl-2,6-dinitrobenzenamine (pendimethalin); 3,6-dichloropicolinic acid (lontrel); 3-amino-2,5-dichlorobenzoic acid (chloramben); 2-chloro-N,N,N-trimethylethanaminium chloride (chlormequat); 4-amino-3,5-dichloro-6-fluoro-2-pyridinyl oxyacetic acid (fluroxypyr); butanedioic acid mono 2,2-dimethylhydrazide)4-chlorophenyl)methyl]-(1,1-dimethylethyl)-1-H-1,2,4,triazol-1-ethanol (paclobutrazol); N'-[4-(4-chlorophenoxy)phenyl]-N,N-dimethylurea (chloroxuron); dimethyl tetrachloroterephthalate (DCPA); 3,6-dichloro-2-methoxybenzoic acid (dicamba); 2-(2,4,5-trichlorophenoxy) propanoic acid (fenoprop).
`Sweet Sue' peach (Prunus persica L. Batsch) trees were subjected to a factorial arrangement of treatments. At planting, trees were headed at 10 or 70 cm above the bud union and trees were trained to an open-vase or central-leader form. For the first 4 years, high-headed trees were larger than low-headed trees. After 7 years, open-vase trees had larger trunk cross-sectional area, tree spread, and canopy volume than central-leader trees. Open-vase trees had higher yield and crop value per tree, but lower yield and crop value per unit of land area or unit of canopy volume than central-leader trees. Crop density and yield efficiency were similar for all treatments.
Three-year-old `Campbell Redchief Delicious'/MM.111 [Malus domestica (Borkh.)] trees were subjected to a factorial arrangement of annual pruning treatments (removal of excess scaffold limbs vs. no removal, heading the terminal extension shoot on scaffold limbs vs. no heading) plus a treatment involving gradual removal of excess scaffold limbs. Six years after treatments were initiated, pruning treatment did not influence tree height or trunk size. Tree spread was greatest for nonheaded trees. Although yield, yield efficiency, and gross returns were reduced by either type of pruning, there was significant interaction between limb removal and heading. Compared to no limb removal or heading, limb removal plus heading reduced cumulative gross returns by ≈ $12,800/ha.
Girdled or nongirdled `Biscoe' peach (Prunus persica [L.] Batsch) secondary scaffold branches were covered with shade fabric to provide a range of photosynthetic photon flux densities (PPFD) from 44 to 20 days before harvest (DBH), from 20 to 0 DBH or 44 to 0 DBH. Fruit quality was affected differently by the various periods of shade during the final swell of fruit development. Shading 40 to 20 DBH did not affect fruit weight or quality, whereas shading 44 to 0 DBH had the greatest effect on fruit weight and quality. Fruit quality was generally similar on branches exposed to 100% and 45% incident PPFD (IPPFD). Fruit on” girdled branches generally responded to shade more than fruit on nongirdled branches. Fruit weight was positively related to percent IPPFD for girdfed but not nongirdled branches shaded 20 to 0 DBH and 44 to DBH. On nongirdled branches, fruit exposed to 45% IPPFD for 44 to 0 DBH had 14% less red color and 21% lower soluble solids content (SSC) than nonshaded fruit. Harvest was delayed >10 days and preharvest fruit drop was increased by shading to <23% IPPFD. Shading branches for 20 to 0 or 44 to 0 DBH altered the relationship between flesh firmness and ground color: Firmness declined as ground color changed from green to yellow for fruit shaded 44 to 20 DBH, but firmness declined with little change in ground color for fruit shaded 20 to 0 or 44 to 0 DBH. Girdling results indicated that fruit weight and SSC partially depended on photosynthate from nonshaded portions of the canopy, whereas fruit redness, days from bloom to harvest, and ground color depended on PPFD in the vicinity of the fruit.
Five apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) cultivars were treated with dicamba at concentrations of 0 to 200 mg·liter-1 during 3 years. Although the response varied with cultivar, dose, and year, dicamba always delayed fruit abscission. At similar concentrations, dicamba usually reduced fruit drop more than NAA, but less than fenoprop. Dicamba at 10 mg·liter-1 effectively delayed drop of `Delicious', whereas 20 to 30 mg·liter-1 was required for `Red Yorking', `Rome', `Winesap', and `Stayman'. Dicamba did not influence flesh firmness, soluble solids content, water core, or starch content at harvest or after storage. Chemical names used: naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA); 2-(2,4,5-trichlorophenoxy)propionic acid (fenoprop); 3,6dichloro-2-methoxybenzoic acid (dicamba).