Articles
Groundcover management strategies for improving fruit set by alleviating abiotic stresses in an irrigated sweet cherry orchard in Okanagan Valley, BC, Canada
Article number
1375_46
Pages
351 – 356
Language
English
Abstract
Sweet cherry (Prunus avium) is a high-value fruit product in Canadian domestic and international markets, and the importance of its sustainable production is significant to the horticultural industry.
A four-year research was initiated in 2019 on a 4-year-old Lapins on Krymsk 5 rootstock in Summerland, BC, Canada, exploring the ability of three groundcover treatments control (CON), woven black geotextile (WBG), and bark and wood chips mulch (BWM) to alleviate abiotic stresses and thereby improve sweet cherry fruit set.
Treatments were arranged in randomized complete block design with six replications.
The 2021 results are reported in this article.
The BWM treatment was applied in-row at a rate of 250 m3 ha‑1 in 2019 and topped up at a rate of 167 m3 ha‑1 in 2020. Soil moisture and temperature were continuously monitored during the growing season.
Soil volumetric moisture ranged from 0.15 to 0.28% and soil temperature ranged from 11 to 24°C. Yield was not affected by treatments.
The only fruit quality parameters that were affected by treatments were titratable acidity (TA), berry weight and berry firmness.
The CON resulted in greater TA compared to WBG, but not different from BWM. The CON produced larger fruits than BWM, but not WBG. Fruit in CON showed greater firmness relative to WBG and BWM. Treatments did not affect tree cross sectional area (TCSA). In 2021, August photosynthetic rates were greater in BMW and WBG compared with CON. Leaf water potential was greater in CON than BMW and WBG at the end of July 2021. Overall, groundcover treatments did not have a profound and consistent effect on fruit set, yield and fruit quality of sweet cherries in this irrigated orchard.
A four-year research was initiated in 2019 on a 4-year-old Lapins on Krymsk 5 rootstock in Summerland, BC, Canada, exploring the ability of three groundcover treatments control (CON), woven black geotextile (WBG), and bark and wood chips mulch (BWM) to alleviate abiotic stresses and thereby improve sweet cherry fruit set.
Treatments were arranged in randomized complete block design with six replications.
The 2021 results are reported in this article.
The BWM treatment was applied in-row at a rate of 250 m3 ha‑1 in 2019 and topped up at a rate of 167 m3 ha‑1 in 2020. Soil moisture and temperature were continuously monitored during the growing season.
Soil volumetric moisture ranged from 0.15 to 0.28% and soil temperature ranged from 11 to 24°C. Yield was not affected by treatments.
The only fruit quality parameters that were affected by treatments were titratable acidity (TA), berry weight and berry firmness.
The CON resulted in greater TA compared to WBG, but not different from BWM. The CON produced larger fruits than BWM, but not WBG. Fruit in CON showed greater firmness relative to WBG and BWM. Treatments did not affect tree cross sectional area (TCSA). In 2021, August photosynthetic rates were greater in BMW and WBG compared with CON. Leaf water potential was greater in CON than BMW and WBG at the end of July 2021. Overall, groundcover treatments did not have a profound and consistent effect on fruit set, yield and fruit quality of sweet cherries in this irrigated orchard.
Authors
M. Sharifi, Hao Xu, B. Rabie, D. Ediger, S. Gafner-Bergeron, S. Damin
Keywords
climate change, fruit quality, soil, yield
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