ISHS Acta Horticulturae 231: II International Symposium on Mango
SESSION—IX - SPECIAL PROBLEMS - I) TREE SIZE CONTROL |
| Authors: | Dr. K.S. Chauhan, Dr. R.N. Pal |
| Abstract:
The Keynote Address was presented by Dr. C.P.A. Iyer, who mentioned that four main approaches should be made for tree size control in mango, namely, breeding of scion having shorter internodes, pruning of mangoes, use of dwarfing rootstocks and use of chemicals. While, we have scanty data on all these aspects, yet we do not have a clear picture for final recommendations. Dr. Iyer felt that early flowering itself would have a dwarfing effect. It is felt that our germplasm in mango should be screened thoroughly for obtaining dwarf genotypes so that these can either be used directly or can be used in breeding as one of the parents. The variety ‘Creeping’, reported to have no apical dominance, may be used in breeding work designed for getting dwarf hybrids. While pruning has been demonstrated as a good size controlling operation, more work needs to be done on the response of different varieties, time and extent of pruning, etc. Since early flowering itself would have a dwarfing effect on trees, there is need to try different chemicals to induce flowering in young grafted plants of different varieties. There is need to use wild Mangifera species as rootstocks since many of the cultivars of M. indica have not given consistent results with dwarfing. Different rootstocks known to be dwarf appear to behave differently under different environment. The use of interstocks in dwarfing mango need testing since this could be a good approach. Though some growth retardents are known to dwarf mango trees, more work is needed on this aspect especially on the persistance of the chemical, time of application and periodicity of application Studies on the effect of various cultural practices in regulating the size of the tree also needs attention. Large number of seedlings in the nursery stage may be screened for dwarfing characters and may be selected for testing on large scale. | |
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