ISHS Acta Horticulturae 735: I International Guava Symposium
MODIFYING EXISTING GUAVA TREE CANOPIES FOR INCREASED PRODUCTION EFFICIENCY |
| Authors: | G. Singh, R. Mishra, S. Gupta |
| Keywords: | Psidium guajava L., heading back, canopy management, fruiting, quality attributes |
| Abstract:
A field trial aimed at restoring yield and quality production from exhausted trees of cvs Allahabad Safeda and Sardar were conducted on eighteen-year-old severely pruned orchards for three consecutive years (2002-2005). Topping and hedging generally increased the number of new shoots (below the cut portion) over the un-pruned control trees. Topping and hedging operations particularly performed in May and October, reduced tree size and consequently improved the fruiting potential of trees. As a result of topping and hedging, the tree height was reduced by 34 to 43 per cent over the control trees in both the varieties. Similarly, May and October pruning restricted tree canopy dimension by 29.89 to 50.03 per cent (different topped trees) over the control trees without adversely affecting yield. An enhancement of yield, i.e., 82.39 kg plant-1 in Allahabad Safeda and 53.10 kg plant-1 in Sardar as against un-pruned trees after the first year of topping and hedging. Further, yield enhancement in the rang of 104-112 kg plant-1 to 74.90-79.20 kg plant-1 over the control trees was recorded in Allahabad Safeda and Sardar after second year of pruning as result of topping and hedging and vegetative to reproductive balance begins to stabilize. The fruit produced from pruned trees had better quality as compared to control trees in both the varieties. The results of this experiment provide insight into the interaction effect of rejuvenation pruning and cropping pattern on guava trees. | |
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