HORTICULTURAL EVALUATION OF THE CV BEBECOU PROPAGATED IN VITRO

The Bebecou cultivar was propagated both in vitro (MP) and by grafting. The plants grafted into Myrobalan 29 C were obtained from normal buds (NB) and from buds produced in vitro (VB), coming, however, from the same mother plant.

The following traits were recorded: trunk circumference, height, width and thickness of the canopy, pruning wood weight, production per tree, average fruit weight, pH, acidity and total sugar content of the flesh.

The leaf analysis was carried out for four consecutive years in order to find out eventual nutritional differences.

The micropropagated trees (MP) showed a lower growth than the grafted ones and produced less pruning wood.

The production of the first two years showed higher values in the tree grafted with normal buds (NB) while in the other two treatments, considerably lower values were recorded. From the third year of production onwards no significant differences were recorded. The yield efficiency (g/cm2 of the trunk cross-sectional area) turned out to be initially greater in the NB trees but they later had higher values in the MP trees.

There were however no differences in the average weight and in the physical-chemical characteristics of the fruit.

The leaf analysis showed a higher content of potassium and calcium in the MP trees. The above would lead us to presume that the micropropagated plants have a greater absorption of potassium and calcium.

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