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Trials were conducted in 2004 to compare the effects of soybean oil formulations and concentrations on flowering and fruit thinning of rabbiteye and southern highbush blueberries. Mature `Climax' bushes near Spring City, Tenn., were sprayed to runoff on 10 Feb. with water, or 9% soybean oil in the formulations TNsoy11, TNsoy12, TNsoy13, TNsoy14, or Golden Natur'l (GN). In a second trial, 3-year-old `Legacy' southern highbush plants at Spring Hill, Tenn., were sprayed on 11 Feb. with 0%, 6%, 9%, 12%, and 15% GN. A similar trial was sprayed on 5 Mar. at Fletcher, N.C., using young plants of various Southern highbush cultivars. Each formulation of soybean oil (9%) delayed bud development and flower anthesis of `Climax' bushes. Bloom opening on `Legacy' bushes was delayed by 2 to 6 days with sprays of ≥9% GN, with higher concentrations causing more delay. However, flower bud mortality of `Legacy' plants was greater when sprayed with the higher oil concentrations. `Legacy' plants sprayed with 0%, 6%, and ≥9% oil had 0%, 30% and ≥70% bud mortality, respectively, at 36 days after treatment. `Legacy' plants sprayed with 12% and 15% oil sprays had an estimated 24% and 13%, respectively, of a crop load compared to the estimated 100% crop load on control plants. Flower bud development, flower bud mortality, crop load and berry size (across cultivars) of Southern highbush cultivars at Fletcher were not affected by oil treatments. Results were variable among trials, perhaps due to factors such as cultivars, timing of application (date), maturity of plants, environmental conditions, etc. There is potential for soybean oil formulations to be used as a chemical thinner as well as to delay blooming.

`Legacy' southern highbush blueberry plants at the Middle Tennessee Research and Education Center were sprayed on 22 Feb. 2005 with 0%, 6%, 9%, or 12% soybean oil. The treatments were arranged in a randomized complete-block design with five replications. Flower bud abortion was evaluated by sampling 25 flower buds/plant on 21 Mar., dissecting, and visually examining buds for browning of ovaries. Flower bud phonology was rated periodically until first bloom and then percentage of open bloom was rated every 2 to 3 days. Fruit were harvested for yield and 50-berry samples taken weekly for the first 4 weeks to determine berry size. Sprays of 6%, 9%, and 12% soybean oil delayed the 50% open bloom date of `Legacy' by 2, 4, and 9 days, respectively, but also caused 9%, 35% and 87% mortality of flower buds. `Legacy' bushes sprayed with 0%, 6%, 9% and 12% soybean yielded 11.6, 13.7, and 10.3, and 4.5 lb/bush, respectively. Berry size was increased by 14% to 23% by oil sprays. In a second experiment, `Climax' blueberries in a commercial planting in Spring City, Tenn., were sprayed on 4 Mar. with water, 5% TNsoy14 (96% soybean oil, a.i.), 500 ppm abscisic acid (ABA) (Valent BioSciences Corp., Long Grove, Ill.), or the combination of oil and ABA (seven replications). Flower bud development and bloom were rated as previously described. Spraying 5% TNsoy14 or 500 ppm ABA delayed the 50% open bloom date by 1 day and the combination of the two delayed bloom by an additional day. On 5 Apr., `Climax' bushes sprayed with 5% TNsoy14, 500 ppm ABA, and 5% TNsoy14 plus 500 ppm ABA had 49%, 41%, and 20% open bloom compared to 70% open bloom on control plants. The 5% oil, 500 ppm ABA, and the oil plus ABA treatments did not significantly affect crop load or berry size.