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Off-season production of several tropical and subtropical fruits has been successfully practiced commercially in Taiwan. By combining pruning, removal of leaves, and application of growth regulators, it is possible to have two to three crops of grapes per year. By grafting the chilled scions of temperate Asian pear onto the water shoots of low-chilling native pear varieties, it is possible to produce high-quality Asian pears (temperate-origin) in a subtropical environment. By using techniques such as root-pruning, flooding, and application of growth inhibitors, it is possible to induce flower bud formation and hasten the production of wax apples. The production periods of other fruit crops such as jujubes and sugar apples, can also be modified by pruning and other techniques.
Fruit and leaves from different cultivars of thornless blackberry (Rubus sp.), red raspberry (Rubus idaeus L.), black raspberry (Rubus occidentalis L.), and strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa D.) plants were analyzed for total antioxidant capacity (oxygen radical absorbance capacity, ORAC) and total phenolic content. In addition, fruit were analyzed for total anthocyanin content. Compared to fruit, leaves were found to have higher ORAC values. In fruit, ORAC values ranged from 7.8 to 33.7 μmol Trolox equivalents (TE)/g of fresh berries, while in leaves, ORAC values ranged from 20.8 to 45.6 μmol TE/g of fresh leaves. Fruit harvested at different stages of maturity were analyzed in blackberries, raspberries, and strawberries. Blackberries and strawberries had their highest ORAC values during the green stages, while raspberries generally had the highest ORAC activity at the ripe stage (with exception of cv. Jewel, a black raspberry). Total anthocyanin content increased with maturity for all three fruit. There was a linear correlation existed between total phenolic content and ORAC activity for fruit and leaves. For ripe berries, there was also a linear relationship between ORAC values and anthocyanin content. Of the ripe fruit and leaves tested, raspberry plants appeared to be the richest source for antioxidants.
Leaf color mutants play an important role in our understanding of chlorophyll biosynthesis and catabolism. In this study, we obtained a yellow-green leaf mutant hy in an ethyl methanesulfonate mutagenized population of chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa ssp. pekinensis). The hy phenotype was controlled by a recessive allele at a single locus. The intrinsic photochemical activity of photosystem II (PSII) is impaired in hy, suggesting that absorbed light energy is not efficiently transferred from the light-harvesting complexes antenna to the PSII reaction centers and dissipated as heat or fluorescence. We measured chlorophyll content and chlorophyll precursors and analyzed the expression of key genes in the chlorophyll synthetic pathway in hy and wild type. The mutation phenotype was consistent with inhibited expression of chlorophyll a oxygenase (CAO) gene in the chlorophyll synthetic pathway. In mutant hy, CAO cDNA was cloned so that a C to T mutation at 1099 bp caused a conserved proline (Pro) to serine (Ser) mutation at the 367th amino acid in C-domain, which changed the secondary structure of CAO protein. We speculate that the mutation amino acid changed in the C-domain may affect the catalytic function in mutant CAO.
High temperature (HT) is a major environmental stress limiting oversummer production of nonheading Chinese cabbage (NHCC, Brassica campestris ssp. chinensis Makino). In the present study, the effects of HT on photosynthetic capacity, including light reaction and carbon assimilation, were completely investigated in two NHCC, ‘xd’ (heat-tolerant), and ‘sym’ (heat-susceptible). The two genotypes showed significant differences in plant morphology, photosynthetic capacity, and photosynthate metabolism (carboassimilation). HT caused a decrease in photosynthesis, chlorophyll contents, and photochemical activity in NHCC. However, these main photosynthetic-related parameters, including net photosynthetic rate (P N ), maximal photochemical efficiency of PSII (Fv/Fm), and total chlorophyll content in ‘xd’, were significantly higher than those of ‘sym’ plants. The antioxidant contents and antioxidative enzyme activities of ascorbic acid-reduced glutathione cycle in the chloroplast of ‘xd’ were significantly higher than those of ‘sym’. Microscopic analyses revealed that HT affected the structure of photosynthetic apparatus and membrane integrity to a different extent, whereas ‘xd’ could maintain a better integrated chloroplast shape and thylakoid. Inhibited light reaction also hampered carbon assimilation, resulting in a decline of carboxylation efficiency and imbalance of carbohydrate metabolism. However, larger declined extents in these data were presented in ‘sym’ (heat-susceptible) than ‘xd’ (heat-tolerant). The heat-tolerant genotype ‘xd’ had a better capacity for self-protection by improved light reaction and carbon assimilation responding to HT stress.
We investigated the effects of different planting seasons and gibberellic acid treatments on the growth and development of Gypsophila paniculata to explore new approaches to controlling the flowering period. Four different cultivars were selected and continually planted in July, September, and November in the low-latitude and high-altitude region of Kunming, China (25° N, 102° E). Results showed that the vegetative growth and flowering time of Gypsophila paniculata were prolonged and postponed when the planting time was delayed. Specifically, ‘My Pink’ showed 20% and 80% rosette rates when grown in autumn and winter, respectively, thus indicating that Gypsophila paniculata is sensitive to planting time. Moreover, GA3 treatment not only can significantly promote vegetative growth but also can stimulate early flowering and suppress the occurrence of rosettes during winter. This is more specific to ‘My Pink’, which showed 40% and 80% reductions in rosette rates with four and eight GA3 treatment applications, respectively. Our study showed that seasonal variations in the growth and development of Gypsophila paniculata and GA3 treatment can effectively stimulate early flowering and suppress rosettes during winter.