Yield efficiency for nine apple cultivars grafted on two rootstocks

Eficiência produtiva de nove cultivares de macieira sobre dois porta-enxertos

ABSTRACT:

Currently, using smaller trees is one of the most important trends in apple cultivation. It is expected that reduced size plants produce lower amount of fruit, but with high yield and yield efficiency. The aim of this study was to evaluate the yield efficiency (YE) of nine apple tree cultivars, grafted on two rootstocks, from the second to the seventh year after planting. The YE indexes oscillated from one to the other year, regardless of rootstock. Correlations between YE and yield per tree and between YE and trunk cross sectional area (TCSA) confirmed that efficiency can be increased by the production increment or by the plant's vigor reduction. The usefulness of cumulative YE (ƩYE) is highlighted to compare apple tree cultivars after the third year of production. The highest ƩYE indexes were observed for 'Royal Gala' and 'Baigent', on M-9 rootstock, and for 'Gala Real' and 'Maxi-Gala', on Marubakaido/M-9 rootstock.

Key words:
Malus x domestica; M-9; Marubakaido; production; vigor