irrigated in the afternoon rather than in the early morning ( Ningen et al., 2005 ). The objective of this research was to identify cultural practices used in commercial production of wintercreeper euonymus by nurseries that do and those that do not
Quality of stone fruit is defined by fruit size, color, firmness, flavor, shape, general appearance, adhesion and size of the stone and fruit surface characteristics (e.g. fuzz, abrasions, pest damage). Cultural practices, such as pruning, nutrition, irrigation, growth regulator usage and pesticide applications can influence these quality characteristics to a greater or lesser extent. Adequate potassium nutrition can improve soluble solids and fruit size in plums. Excess nitrogen fertilization can soften peaches. Well-timed calcium sprays are thought to improve the firmness of sweet cherries, as are applications of gibberellin. Ethylene synthesis inhibitor usage can alter the timing of ripening, reduce early fruit drop and improve storage. Irrigation scheduling is a tool that can be used to regulate final fruit size and firmness, as well as time of maturation. Selective pruning is used to structure a tree's architecture for improved light penetration to improve fruit size and color. These and other production practices will be discussed in relation to how they affect fruit quality in stone fruit.
; Boesch and Mitkowski, 2005 ; Danneberger and Taylor, 1996 ; Happ, 1998 ; Yelverton, 2005 ). However, if over-fertilized or not properly maintained, excessive thatch buildup can occur on creeping bentgrass putting greens. Common cultural practices used
The grape variety `Himrod' under conventional storage practices has a short storage life while it has an excellent quality character.
To modify berry size and cluster compactness, different treatments are being used. Application of these cultural practices has pronounced effect on storage life of grapes. The cultural practices consist of different combinations of gibberellin application (two different concentrations), girdling and cluster thjnning.
Biophysical and biochemical evaluation of the grapes under two different modified storage conditions showed that treated grapes react differently during storage. Our results suggest that grapes that were only treated with gibberellin (20 ppm at shatter and 50 ppm postshatter) were better than control slid any other combined treatments and the worst was the case of only girdling application. Combination of these two treatments were intermediate in terms of biophysical evaluation.
Abstract
To determine whether cold hardiness of peach [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] is affected by cultural practices, 2-year-old ‘Coronet’ trees growing in a peach tree short-life site were treated by soil fumigation with 1,2-dibromo-3-chloropropane (DBCP) late fall application of nitrogen, combination of fumigation and fall applied nitrogen, fall pruning (November), or usual grower practices (control). Cold hardiness was measured by determining the leakage of electrolytes from dormant terminal twig sections exposed to low temperatures, and visually by oxidative browning and ease of phloem-xylem separation. Fall-pruned trees were lower in cold hardiness and survival than controls. Nitrogen applied alone or in combination with fumigation reduced cold hardiness in early winter but increased vigor and survival. Trees grown in fumigated soil and winter-pruned were hardier than control trees and fall-pruned trees in nonfumigated soil. Differences in hardiness were greatest near bloom time. Cultural practices strongly affected cold hardiness of xylem, phloem, and cambium of treated trees, and cold hardiness was associated with tree longevity.
Abstract
Two cultivars of Pelargonium hortorum Ait. were used to determine the effect of certain environmental conditions and cultural practices on the formation and development of oedema. High light intensity, low nutritional levels and high soil moisture content increased susceptibility of leaves to oedema. Severity increased when plants were subsequently exposed to environmental conditions that favored water absorption rather than transpiration. A study of stomatal behavior of oedematous leaves showed greater vapor diffusion resistance compared with normal leaves. The excess water in leaf tissues caused hypertrophy of some cells in the leaf which resulted in plugging the sub-stomatal chamber. Sometimes there was an increase in the size of epidermal cells adjacent to guard cells forcing them to close. The stoma was sometimes collapsed as a result of hypertrophy of surrounding cells. The differences in the susceptibility of the 2 cultivars to oedema under high soil moisture was due to differences in their internal structure and stomatal behavior.
Various soil amendments and cultural practices were examined in both a phytophthora-infested (Phytophthora fragariae var. rubi) (+PFR) and uninfested field (–PFR) planted to `Heritage' red raspberries. Although plants in the +PFR field did not exhibit typical disease symptoms due to unseasonably dry weather, their growth was less than those in the –PFR field. After 2 years, plants in the +PFR site had the highest yields in plots treated with phosphorous acid or amended with gypsum, whereas compost-amended plots had the lowest yields in both +PFR and –PFR sites. A second field study confirmed the positive effect of gypsum on growth and yield of raspberries in an infested site. In a third study, `Titan' raspberries grown under greenhouse conditions in pots containing unamended soil from the infested site, then flooded, exhibited severe disease symptoms; however, pasteurization of the soil, treatment with phosphorous acid and metalaxyl fungicide, or gypsum amendment mostly prevented symptoms from developing. These three studies suggest that a preplant soil amendment containing certain readily available forms of calcium, such as found in gypsum, can help suppress phytophthora root rot and increase survival, growth and yield of raspberries in sites where the pathogen is present.
Abstract
The effects of cultural practices on the yield and uniformity of 2 cabbage varieties were studied during a 3-year period. There was no advantage of using more than 60 lb. of N per acre. Most uniform plants, as measured by variance of head weights, were produced on plots transplanted at a shallow or medium depth although greater yields were usually produced on the deeply transplanted plots. Largest yields of cabbage were produced by plants designated as large at transplanting. There were no important uniformity differences between plant sizes. Spacing of plants 9 inches apart in the row instead of 12 or 15 inches resulted in larger yields. In all experiments, the hybrid variety ‘Emerald Cross’ was equal to or superior to the non-hybrid ‘Round Dutch’. These experiments suggest that the best combination of conditions for once-over harvest is use of large plants of a hybrid variety fertilized with 60 lb. of N per acre and transplanted 9 inches apart in the row at a medium depth.
on pepper ( Ristaino et al., 1997 ). Altering cultural practices may not affect Phytophthora blight development on vining crops like watermelon, which grow off of raised beds and come into contact with the soil between rows ( Kousik et al., 2011
Previous experiments in the laboratory and the field have suggested that location of mycorrhizal infection within the rhizosphere of blueberry plants may depend on cultural practices that are being used. Furthermore, we have observed that rapidly growing roots, whether in solution culture or within petri dishes, appear to be less likely to become infected when inoculated. A preliminary experiment found higher levels of mycorrhizal infection in roots growing at a 5-cm depth of soil compared to roots growing just under the mulch layer. To further test this hypothesis, an experiment was designed to evaluate the infection intensity of highbush blueberry plants (Vaccinium corymbosum L.) at different locations within the rhizosphere on plants growing under varying cultural practices. Cultural practices included mulching (mulch vs. no mulch) and nitrogen level (0 and 120 g ammonium sulfate/plant). Four-year-old `Bluecrop' highbush blueberry plants subjected to these treatments were arranged in a complete factorial design with six replications at the Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center at Rock Springs, Pa. Mycorrhizal infection intensity was evaluated from roots sampled nondestructively using a 2.5 cm soil corer at the interface of the mulch and soil, and at soil depths of 3 and 15 cm from two locations 15 cm from the crown of each plant. Results will be discussed.