Selective flower removal was used in 1987 and 1988 to evaluate intraplant competition or inhibition within flowering uprights of `Searles' cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon Ait.). The lowest two flowers were removed from uprights at various stages of plant development in 1987. With one or both of the two earliest, i.e., lowest, flowers developing `into fruit, 25% of the remaining flowers matured into fruit. Removal of the earliest two flowers at preblossom or late blossom resulted in ≈ 46% fruit set for the remaining flowers. Slightly fewer upper flowers set (36%) when the earliest flowers and fruit were removed at early fruit development. In 1988, the lowest two flowers were removed at preblossom and natural insect pollination was supplemented by hand pollination. Hand-pollinated (upper) flowers set 58% when the lowest two flowers were removed, compared to 17% for the unthinned control. Yield and fruit numbers were lowered slightly as a result of flower thinning in both years. A significant amount of variation in fruit production was explained by the number of flowering uprights per unit of production area in both years.
The apical or king (K) flower in the apple (Malus ×domestica L. Borkh.) cluster usually develops and blooms first and also has a greater sink potential. For this reason, resources are primarily used by the K fruit, and this is also one of the reasons why most thinning practices tend to favor K fruit set. However, it is not always possible to retain the K flower and remove the lateral ones. This study was undertaken to determine if the removal of the most developed flowers in the cluster influences yield or quality compared to that obtained in a whole cluster. The treatments were made in `Golden Delicious' and `Royal Gala' apple cultivars, within a wide range of flower densities for each cultivar. The factor tested was the intensity of flower removal (FRI); the treatments consisted in removing one, two, or three flowers in each cluster. Flower density was used as a covariate in an analysis of covariance to account for differences in flower densities in response to FRI treatments. In all experiments the covariate was not significant; therefore FRI effect was not affected by flower density. `Golden Delicious' and `Royal Gala' had similar responses to flower removal, so that when at least three flowers in a cluster remained, fruit set and cluster yield were similar to whole clusters. Only when two or fewer poorly developed flowers remained after FRI treatments, yield was reduced by as much as 25%. Fruit from FRI clusters were even heavier than those from whole clusters, due to reduced competition among the fruit, so that the growth potential of fruit from the first and second lateral flowers was similar to clusters with K fruit, in clusters where the K flower had been removed.
Current recommendations for fruit thinning of processing clingstone peaches in California suggest that growers delay thinning until an assessment of fruit size is made at reference date (10 days after first indications of pit hardening) and then adjust the crop load according to the fruit size attained. Recent research on modelling peach fruit growth indicates that delaying thinning until reference date (usually mid-May) can substantially limit final fruit size potential and crop yield when initial fruit set is heavy. In 1991 we initialed a field study to lest these model predictions and evaluate the yield response and economic feasibility of fruit thinning within 50 days of bloom to a specific crop load. The experiment was conducted in commercial orchards of the extra-early maturing cling peach cultivars Loadel and Carson. Three thinning treatments involved thinning different sets of trees on April 10, April 30, (∼30 and 50 dafb) and May 23 (reference date). Although costs of thinning at the earlier dates were 140-290% of thinning at reference date the increase in yield resulting from early thinning more than compensated for the higher thinning costs. There were no major effects of thinning treatment on the occurrence of split pits or other quality characteristics. This research has stimulated a re-evaluation of commercial fruit thinning practices used for clingstone peaches in California.
84 ORAL SESSION 26 (Abstr. 183-191) Tree Fruits: Thinning/Bloom Delay
Hand thinning fruit is required every season to ensure large fruit size of `Loadel' cling peach [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] in California. Chemical thinning may lower costs of hand thinning. A surfactant, Armothin {[N,N-bis 2-(omega-hydroxypolyoxyethylene/polyoxypropylene) ethyl alkylamine]; AKZO-Nobel, Chicago; AR}, was sprayed at 80% of full bloom (FB), FB, and FB + 3 days. The spray volume was 935 liters/ha. Concentrations of AR were 1%, 3%, and 5% (v/v). An early hand thinning in late April, a normal hand thinning at 13 days before standard reference date (early May), and a nonthinned control were compared to bloom-thinned trees for set, yield, and fruit quality. AR resulted in no damage to fruit; however, slight leaf yellowing and burn and small shoot dieback were seen at the 5% concentration. Fruit set, and therefore, the number of fruit that had to be hand thinned, were reduced with 3% AR applied at 80% FB and 5% AR applied at all bloom phenophases (stages of bloom development). Thinning time was reduced by 37% (5% AR applied at 80% FB), 28% (5% applied at FB), and by 20% (3% applied at 80% of FB), compared to the normally hand-thinned control. Although AR resulted in early size (cross suture diameter and weight) advantages, at harvest there were no significant differences in fruit size among all AR treatments and the normally hand-thinned control. Total and salable yields of AR treatments and the normally hand-thinned control were equal. Armothin shows promise for chemical thinning of peach when used as a bloom thinner.
Apple growers of different regions need different chemical fruit-thinning responses for thinning trees of different tree ages, cultural conditions, rootstocks, climates, and amounts of fruit removal desired. In this research, a range of chemical thinning responses was achieved by combinations of thinning materials or addition of potentiating agents. Superior oil, certain organic phosphates, and a light-absorbing agent (ferbam, a fungicide) increased the thinning of carbaryl. In addition, combinations of 50 or 200 ml 6-BA/liter + carbaryl + oil defruited `Campbell Redchief Delicious'/M.111 trees, and 50 ml 6-BA/liter alone over-thinned in one year (however, oil or 6-BA has been shown previously to cause russet in `Golden Delicious'). Carbaryl 50 WP and the 4L carbaryl formulations were equally effective for thinning `Golden Delicious', `Stayman', and `Redspur Delicious', and did not affect fruit russet. Three days of cloudy weather is typical at least once in most seasons in the eastern United States during the fruit set period. Two days of artificial polypropylene shading (92%) (which was nearly equivalent to 3 days of cloudy weather) caused more thinning of `Golden Delicious' and `Stayman' than carbaryl or 10 mg NAA/liter + Tween. Shading reduced viable seed numbers about 50% for `Golden Delicious' in fruit remaining at harvest, but chemical thinning agents (NAA or carbaryl) did not affect viable seed number.
Abstract
Chemical thinning of peaches was conducted under orchard conditions using CPA, followed by standard hand thinning, on the cultivars ‘Jerseyqueen,’ ‘Sunhigh,’ ‘Redhaven’, ‘Sunqueen’ and ‘Rio Oso Gem.‘ Timing of the 3 sprays at 150 ppm was based on the water volume displacement of 100 fruits selected at random from each plot: a) at 200 ml displacement, b) at 280 ml, and c) at 280 ml plus 4 days. The control was hand thinned only. Ovule length was measured at each spray timing and found to be 7–10 mm at the 280 ml water displacement; both ovule length and water displacement techniques were used to time CPA sprays in over 2000 acres of New Jersey orchards in 1968.
Timing of the CPA thinner for optimum effectiveness in this experiment varied with cultivar. Individual fruit weight was greater on CPA-thinned trees than on the controls for the cultivars ‘Redhaven,’ ‘Rio Oso Gem,’ ‘Sunqueen’ and ‘Sunhigh’ at harvest. Chemically thinned ‘Jerseyqueen’ did not show an increased mean fruit weight at harvest. Yield reductions occurred on ‘Sunhigh’ at the 280 ml timing and on ‘Redhaven’ at the 280 ml + 4 days timing, due apparently to subsequent over-thinning by hand. Shading increased the thinning effectiveness of CPA on all cultivars. ‘Jerseyqueen’ and ‘Redhaven’ were difficult to thin with CPA under the conditions of this experiment. ‘Rio Oso Gem’ was moderately difficult, while ‘Sunhigh’ and ‘Sunqueen’ were thinned readily.
Abstract
Crop reduction on single-shoot ‘Seyval blanc’ grapevines by either berry or cluster thinning resulted in a decrease in total fruit weight and an accompanying increase in berry weight, °Brix, and vegetative growth. Titratable acidity and pH of the juice were not consistently affected by either berry or cluster thinning. Net leaf photosynthesis at 43 days past full bloom increased with higher cluster number per plant. Berry weight was greatest when the crop of berries were borne in three clusters per shoot rather than in a single cluster. Berry thinning appears to be an acceptable substitute to cluster thinning for crop reduction of ‘Seyval blanc’ grapes.
The purpose of this research was to determine the effectiveness of three blossom-thinning compounds on crop density and fruit quality of two peach cultivars. Treatments consisted of 15 ml·L–1 and 30 ml·L–1 ammonium thiosulphate, 30 ml·L–1 and 40 ml·L–1 decyl alcohol, and 40 ml·L–1 lime sulfur. Treatments were applied to `Redhaven' and `Harrow Diamond' peach trees at two phenological stages: 80%, and 100% full bloom in 2002 and 2003. In both years, treatments reduced the crop density in both cultivars, and in 2003 the amount of hand thinning required to adjust the crop load was significantly reduced. Fruit size from several blossom-thinned treatments was comparable with that observed from hand-thinned trees. However, treatments caused significant leaf phytotoxicity to `Harrow Diamond' trees in 2003, likely a result of hand spray gun applications. These data indicate that chemical sprays at bloom can be used successfully to reduce fruit set, but are very environmentally, dose, and cultivar dependent.
Abstract
Methyl N’N’-dimethyl-N-[(methylcarbamoyl)oxy]-1-thiooxaminidate (oxamyl)-thinned fruit of ‘Golden Delicious’ and ‘Starkrimson Delicious’ apples (Malus domestica Borkh.), as did naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) and 1-naphthyl N-methyl carbamate (carbaryl). At 12- and 13-mm diameter fruit size, an increase in concentration of oxamyl sprays increased thinning. Oxamyl produced increasingly severe russet on ‘Golden Delicious’ at concentrations above 300 ppm.