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Bench-grafted `Fuji'/M.26 trees were sprayed with 1% CuEDTA on 31 Oct., defoliated manually on 12 Nov., or allowed to defoliate naturally. Foliar urea at 3% was applied at 14 days and 9 days before CuEDTA treatment. Plants were harvested after natural leaf fall and stored at 2 °C. One set of the plants were destructively sampled for reserve N (expressed as total Kjeldahl N or soluble protein concentration) analysis, and the remaining plants were transplanted into a N-free medium in the spring without any N supply for 40 days after budbreak. CuEDTA resulted in >80% defoliation within 5 days of application. Trees defoliated with CuEDTA had lower reserve N content than naturally defoliated controls, but had higher N than hand-defoliated controls. Foliar urea application before the CuEDTA treatment significantly increased reserve N level in all tree parts, without affecting the efficacy of CuEDTA on defoliation. The extent of spring regrowth was proportional to the reserve N level of the tree. Urea-treated plants, whether hand- or CuEDTA defoliated, had more growth in the spring than hand- or naturally defoliated controls. It is concluded that CuEDTA, as combined with foliar urea, can be used to effectively defoliate apple nursery trees, and increase reserve N level and improve regrowth performance during establishment.

Spring-grafted potted `Fuji'/M26 apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) trees were fertigated with Plantex (20N–10P–20K) weekly until 28 Aug., and sprayed with 1000 ppm abscisic Acid (ABA) two times at 5-day intervals in early September. Nitrogen concentrations of leaves, bark, wood, and root tissues were analyzed using near-infrared reflectance (NIR) spectroscopy at 20to 30-day intervals beginning in August. In general, during leaf senescence, the content of leaf nitrogen decreased and stem nitrogen increased. ABA enhanced leaf senescence and the mobilization of nitrogen from the leaves to the stem tissues. ABA significantly enhanced terminal bud set, endodormancy induction, and cold acclimation. Eventually, the controls attained the similar degree of nitrogen concentration in the stem, terminal bud set, endodormancy, and hardiness.

Uncertain water supplies resulting from changing climatic conditions in western North America led to this investigation of the role of crop load reduction in maintaining performance of high-density ‘Ambrosia’ apple (Malus ×domestica) on M.9 rootstock. A split-plot experimental design was imposed for three growing seasons (2007–09) with six replicates of four main plot irrigation treatments and three crop load subplots comprised of three trees. Four season-long irrigation (Irr) treatments were applied through 2 × 4 L·h⁻¹ drip emitters per tree and included Irr1) control [100% evapotranspiration (ET) replacement], Irr2) 50% ET replacement, Irr3) 50% ET replacement to half the emitters, and Irr4) an increasingly severe treatment commencing at 50% ET replacement (once every 2 days) in 2007 and progressing to 25% and 18% ET replacement, 2008–09. Three target crop loads were established annually, 4–5 weeks after bloom as low (2.5, 3, and 3.75), medium (4.5, 6, and 7.5), and high (9, 12, and 15) fruit/cm² trunk cross-sectional area (TCSA) 2007–09, respectively, by hand thinning around 4 weeks after bloom. Volumetric soil moisture contents generally reflected the amount of water applied and ranged from 20% for control (Irr1) to <10% for Irr4. Both irrigation and crop load treatments affected midday stem water potential more than leaf photosynthesis and stomatal conductance (g _S). By the 2nd and 3rd year stem potential values for irrigation treatments ranged from a maximum of −1.0 to −1.3 MPa for Irr1 to minimums ≤-2.0 MPa for Irr4. g _S decreased as midday stem potential decreased, but at any given stem potential value was greater at high crop loads, presumably in response to an increased demand for photosynthates. Fruit size decreased as crop load increased, but as irrigation deficits became more severe, fruit size was more closely correlated with stem water potential than g _S. Consequently, fruit size was controlled by two mechanisms, competition for photosynthates and the effects of plant water status on g _S. Negative linear relationships between crop load and average fruit size were used to determine the crop load required to produce an average fruit size of 200 g at different irrigation deficits. It was not possible to achieve adequate fruit size when applications were very low, as at 18% to 25% ET in Irr4. Crop load reduction around mid-June had no negative consequences for fruit quality, enhancing fruit color, and soluble solids concentration (SSC) and did not affect the incidence of sunburn, internal breakdown or bitter pit at harvest.

Fertigation of young Fuji/M26 apple trees (Malus domestica Borkh.) with different nitrogen concentrations by using a modified Hoagland solution for 6 weeks resulted in a wide range of leaf nitrogen content in recently expanded leaves (from 0.9 to 4.4 g·m^–2). Net photosynthesis at ambient CO₂, carboxylation efficiency, and CO₂-saturated photosynthesis of recently expanded leaves were closely related to leaf N content expressed on both leaf area and dry weight basis. They all increased almost linearly with increase in leaf N content when leaf N < 2.4 g·m^–2, leveled off when leaf N increased further. The relationship between stomatal conductance and leaf N content was similar to that of net photosynthesis with leaf N content, but leaf intercellular CO₂ concentration tended to decrease with increase in leaf N content, indicating non-stomatal limitation in leaves with low N content. Photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency was high when leaf N < 2.4 g·m^–2, but decreased with further increase in leaf N content. Due to the correlation between leaf nitrogen and phosphorus content, photosynthesis was also associated with leaf P content, but to a lesser extent.

Mature, fruiting ‘Ambrosia’/‘M.9’ apple [Malus ×sylvestris (L.) Mill. var. domestica (Borkh.) Mansf.] trees were subjected over three growing seasons to a split-plot experimental design involving four irrigation main plot treatments and three subplot crop load treatments with six replicates. This semiarid production region is traditionally irrigated 01 May to 01 Oct. during which time an average of ≈ 15 cm of precipitation occurs. Irrigation treatments were applied through 2 × 4 L⋅h⁻¹ emitters per tree and included I1: daily application of 100% evapotranspiration (ET); or I2: 50% daily ET; or I3: 50% ET applied to one side; and I4: 50%, 25%, or 18% ET-application, applied every second day, 2007–09, respectively. Crop load treatments were imposed annually ≈4 to 5 weeks after full bloom to create low (2.5, 3, and 3.75 fruits/cm² trunk cross-sectional area (TCSA), medium (4.5, 6, and 7.5 fruits/cm² TCSA), and high crop loads (9, 12, and 15 fruits/cm² TCSA), 2007–09, respectively. Leaf and fruit nutrient concentration was affected more by crop load than by any deficit irrigation strategy. Increased crop load increased concentrations of leaf nitrogen (N), calcium (Ca), and fruit Ca in 2 of 3 years and consistently decreased concentrations of leaf and fruit phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) and, in 2 of 3 years, fruit boron (B). Reductions in seasonal water applications (as with I4) reduced leaf P in 2 of 3 years. But, when significant, (usually only 1 of 3 year) increased fruit Ca, magnesium (Mg), P, K, and B concentrations. Crop load also had a dominant effect on fruit nutrient removal rates expressed as kilograms per hectare. High crop load increased removal of all measured nutrients in most years. In contrast, imposition of deficit irrigation strategies often (2 of 3 years) reduced fruit P, Mg, and B removal rates but had little effect on N, Ca, and K. Cumulative evidence suggests that deficit irrigation applied to N, P, K, and B fertigated high density ‘Ambrosia’ apple orchards in combination with crop load reduction to maintain fruit size should usually not create additional nutrient problems. However, low fruit Ca concentrations may occur if the crop is very low. Fertigation of 20 g K/tree/year was insufficient for older trees because inadequate K occurred in all treatments by the third year.

Bench-grafted Fuji/M26 plants were fertigated with seven nitrogen concentrations (0, 2.5, 5.0, 7.5, 10, 15, and 20 mM) by using a modified Hoagland solution from 30 June to 1 Sept. In mid-October, half of the fertigated trees were sprayed with 3% urea twice at weekly intervals, while the other half were left as controls. The plants were harvested after natural leaf fall, stored at 2 °C, and then destructively sampled in January for reserve N and carbohydrate analysis. As N concentration used in fertigation increased, whole-plant reserve N content increased progressively with a corresponding decrease in reserve carbohydrate concentration. Foliar urea application increased whole-plant N content and decreased reserve carbohydrate concentration. The effect of foliar urea on whole-plant reserve N content and carbohydrate concentration was dependent on the N status of the plant, with low-N plants being more responsive than high-N plants. There was a linear relationship between the increase in N content and decrease in carbohydrate concentration caused by foliar urea, suggesting that part of the reserve carbohydrates was used to assimilate N from foliar urea. Regardless of the difference in tree size caused by N fertigation, the increase in the total amount of reserve N by foliar urea application was the same on a whole-tree basis, indicating that plants with low-N background were more effective in using N from urea spray than plants with high-N background.

We propose that return flowering of `Fuji' apple can be improved if sufficient flower clusters are removed during or shortly after bloom. In this study conducted at Corvallis, Ore., we evaluated two synthetic auxins, MCPB-ethyl and the Na salt of NAA, each at 0, 4, 8 and 16 ppm, as blossom cluster thinners. Each auxin treatment was applied alone or with 100 ppm ethephon as a tank mix. Six-year-old `Fuji'/M.26 trees were sprayed at full bloom of the king flowers (≈85% of whole-tree full bloom). A follow-up treatment of Sevin XLR (800 ppm carbaryl) was made at 11-mm fruit diameter to determine if carbaryl's known effectiveness as a fruitlet thinner was influenced by the bloom-time auxin or auxin + ethephon treatments. MCPB-ethyl proved ineffective as a bloom-time thinner, whereas the NAA effect on cluster removal was linear with concentration, 16 ppm NAA completely defruiting 33% of initial flower clusters. On control trees fewer than 12% of flowering clusters failed to set fruit. Ethephon alone defruited 25% of the clusters and NAA+ethephon defruited 51% of clusters. It is notable that the NAA and ethephon + NAA treatments did not reduce fruit set on the remaining clusters, resulting in considerable need for hand-thinning. Carbaryl effectively reduced total crop load by increasing the number of defruited clusters and reducing the incidence of doubles and triples. There was evidence to suggest that its effectiveness was compromised by the bloom-time NAA and/or ethephon sprays.

Seedling plugs of `Better Boy' tomato plants (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) were potted in processed fiber:perlite (60:40% by volume) media amended or nonamended with either crystalline or powdered hydrophilic polymer (2.4 kg·m^–3), and treated with one of the several concentrations (0, 2.5, 5, 7.5, and 10%) of antitranspirant GLK-8924, at the four true-leaf stage. Plants were either well-irrigated or subjected to short-term water stress, water withholding for 3 days, after antitranspirant GLK-8924 application. Leaf stomatal conductance, transpiration rate, whole plant transpirational water loss, and growth were depressed by short-term water stress and antitranspirant GLK-8924. In contrast, hydrophilic polymer amendment increased plant growth, resulting in higher transpirational water loss. The depression of stomatal conductance and transpiration rate by short-term water stress was reversed completely in 2 days after rewatering while the reduction of plant growth rate diminished immediately. The effects of antitranspirant GLK-8924 were nearly proportional to its concentration and lasted 8 days on stomatal conductance and transpiration rate, 4 days on plant growth rate, and throughout the experimental period on plant height and transpirational water loss. Plant growth was reduced by antitranspirant GLK-8924 possibly by closing leaf stomata. In contrast, hydrophilic polymer amendment resulted in larger plants by factors other than influences attributed to stomatal status. Hydrophilic polymer amendment did not interact with antitranspirant GLK-8924 on all variables measured. The application of antitranspirant GLK-8924 was demonstrated to be useful for regulating plant water status, plant growth and protecting plants from short-term water stress.

Three experiments were conducted at two locations, two at Summerland, British Columbia, Canada and one at Corvallis, Ore., to evaluate synthetic auxins (MCPB-ethyl or NAA) and ethephon as blossom thinners for `Fuji' apple [Malus sylvestris (L.) Mill var. domestica (Borkh.) Mansf.]. These experiments also involved application of carbaryl at 1000 mg·L^-1 in the postbloom period. All blossom thinners were sprayed at 85% full bloom while carbaryl was applied at 11-mm fruit diameter. Within these experiments, MCPB-ethyl at up to 20 mg·L^-1 or NAA at up to 21 mg·L^-1 increased whole flower cluster removal linearly with rate; however, with the Corvallis experiment MCPB-ethyl failed to result in any thinning. Neither auxin treatment consistently reduced fruit set on the remaining clusters, resulting in “clustering”. Bloom-time application of ethephon at 100 mg·L^-1 with NAA further reduced crop load. Carbaryl reduced total crop load by increasing both whole cluster removal and number of sites with a single fruit. Return flowering was not improved by the auxin treatments except where there was very excessive crop reduction. Ethephon or carbaryl promoted return flowering with the carbaryl effect being more pronounced. However, this carbaryl effect was significantly countered by the bloom-time auxin whereas ethephon overcame the negative effects of the auxin treatments. The combined use of ethephon and carbaryl was effective in terms of both crop reduction and return flowering benefits. Chemical names used: 1-naphthyl N-methylcarbamate (carbaryl); 2-chloroethylphosphonic acid (ethephon); ethyl 4-(4-chloro-2-methylphenoxy) butanoate (MCPB-ethyl); and 2-(1-naphthyl) acetic acid (NAA).