Articles
Sampling procedures to determine fruit size in pitaya
Article number
1452_21
Pages
163 – 170
Language
English
Abstract
Pitaya is a hemi-epiphytic, climbing cactus native to Mexico and Central America, which is now widely cultivated in Southeast Asia and, more recently, in the Mediterranean region.
Its increasing popularity is due to its visually striking appearance, nutritional benefits, and high profitability.
However, in regions outside its habitat, the absence of natural pollinators necessitates artificial hand-pollination for most cultivars, as the species exhibit pronounced herkogamy and partial self-incompatibility.
Hand-pollination is therefore essential and the different procedures to achieve it must be carefully evaluated, as it directly influences seed formation and, consequently, fruit quality.
Inefficient pollination methods may maintain high fruit set, but result in smaller fruits, increasing the proportion of non-marketable produce.
To assess fruit quality, it is necessary to measure consistently several size-related parameters.
Pitaya fruit is a multi-seeded berry, and fruit size is positively related to seed number.
However, the large number and irregular distribution of seeds within the fruit complicates seed counting to assess the efficacy of the pollination procedures, seed counting being also a labour-intensive and time-consuming task.
To address this issue, the implementation of sampling procedures is essential.
In this study, transverse and longitudinal fruit sections, as well as cylindrical samples, were analysed to estimate seed number and correlate these values with fruit size parameters and total seed count.
Results showed that fruit weight is significantly related to the number of seeds.
A strong correlation has also been found between fruit weight and equatorial diameter, while the correlation between weight and length is weaker.
Total and pulp fruit weight and pulp/skin ratio are also significantly correlated.
The sampling procedure with the best results involved using three transverse sections of the pulp, yielding a strong correlation between the seed count from these three sections and the total seed count of the fruit.
Its increasing popularity is due to its visually striking appearance, nutritional benefits, and high profitability.
However, in regions outside its habitat, the absence of natural pollinators necessitates artificial hand-pollination for most cultivars, as the species exhibit pronounced herkogamy and partial self-incompatibility.
Hand-pollination is therefore essential and the different procedures to achieve it must be carefully evaluated, as it directly influences seed formation and, consequently, fruit quality.
Inefficient pollination methods may maintain high fruit set, but result in smaller fruits, increasing the proportion of non-marketable produce.
To assess fruit quality, it is necessary to measure consistently several size-related parameters.
Pitaya fruit is a multi-seeded berry, and fruit size is positively related to seed number.
However, the large number and irregular distribution of seeds within the fruit complicates seed counting to assess the efficacy of the pollination procedures, seed counting being also a labour-intensive and time-consuming task.
To address this issue, the implementation of sampling procedures is essential.
In this study, transverse and longitudinal fruit sections, as well as cylindrical samples, were analysed to estimate seed number and correlate these values with fruit size parameters and total seed count.
Results showed that fruit weight is significantly related to the number of seeds.
A strong correlation has also been found between fruit weight and equatorial diameter, while the correlation between weight and length is weaker.
Total and pulp fruit weight and pulp/skin ratio are also significantly correlated.
The sampling procedure with the best results involved using three transverse sections of the pulp, yielding a strong correlation between the seed count from these three sections and the total seed count of the fruit.
Authors
R. Rodríguez-Garrido, A.P.M. Carmo, F.M. Chiamolera, I. Salinas, J. Cuevas
Keywords
Selenicereus undatus, artificial pollination, pollination methods, fruit seed number, fruit quality
Groups involved
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