Influence of the rootstock on the growth of the root system, yield and quality of sweet cherry fruits

To study the development of the root systems of cherry trees of ‘Kordia’ and ‘Regina’ grafted onto the rootstocks P. mahaleb and Gisela 6, root excavations were performed using the monolith method.
The research results showed that at the age of seven years, trees grafted on the Gisela 6 rootstock had a root mass 13% greater and a length 34% greater than those in the control.
In the root structure, fibrous and conducting roots with a diameter of less than 3 mm accounted for 92.7% of their length.
The roots of this rootstock more uniformly cover the thickness of the soil horizon up to 60 cm deep, where up to 76% of the total number of roots is concentrated.
Cherry trees grafted onto Mahaleb are significantly uneven both in terms of growth vigor and in the ripening of fruits and the onset of flowering; in general, they lead to later fruiting, increase their yield more slowly, and are inferior in productivity to the Gisela 6 rootstock.
This rootstock promotes the formation of fruits that are larger and have denser pulp; however, it is inferior to Mahaleb cherry in terms of the accumulation of dry substances in the fruits.

EHC2024: International Symposium on Fruit Production Systems for Sustainable and Resilient Development

V. Manziuc, V. Balan, A. Peşteanu, I. Fedorchyukov

Gisela 6, P. mahaleb, roots, placement in soil, yield, fruit quality

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2026.1457.25