ISHS Acta Horticulturae 465: IV International Peach Symposium
CROP LOAD AND FRUIT QUALITY DISTRIBUTION WITHIN CANOPY OF ‘SPRING LADY’ PEACH TREES TRAINED TO ‘CENTRAL LEADER’ AND ‘Y SHAPE’ |
| Authors: | T. Caruso, C. Di Vaio, P. Inglese, L.S. Pace |
| Keywords: | training system, fruit size |
| Abstract:
The distribution of crop load and the relative variability of fruit quality were studied with tree canopies of the peach cv ‘Spring Lady’ trained to ‘Central leader’ and ‘Y shape’. For each training system, experiments were arranged in a complete randomised block design with three replicates of five contiguous trees. Two exposures (East and West) and three locations (top, middle and base) were distinguished within tree canopy. Fruit size and apical shoot length were recorded weekly from set to the end of their growing season. At harvest, leaf area was measured and fruit quality was analysed. Trees trained to ‘Y shape’ yielded 27% more than those trained to ‘Central leader’ and gave the highest fruit quality. ‘Central leader’ trees had an uniform crop load distribution within the canopy but produced fruits with larger size in the upper than in the lower canopy sites, while trees trained to ‘Y shape’ gave the fruits with the highest size and best color in the middle position of the tree. | |
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