Articles
FLOWER MORPHOLOGY OF 23 CULTIVARS OF APRICOT
Donno (1941) relates some morphological characters of Apricot flower that may be used to identify the varieties.
Morrison (1964) considering the stamens number points out the stability of this character in most of the fruit species, unlike the Apricot, for wich he singles out its high variability.
Finally Vachun (1981) has studied the flower morphology of Apricot seedlings rising from the Czechoslovaka Velkopavlovicka variety.
More numerous are the studies on the causes of the anomalies of the Apricot flower morphogenesis.
The Apricot has an early blooming and therefore is very sensitive to late frost.
The flower organs more damaged are the female ones (Breviglieri, 1955; Brown, 1960; Marro and Mola, 1974). The studies of Brown (1960) and Tabuenca (1968) on the effect of the temperature on the flower buds growth point out that low temperatures affect the time between the break of the rest period and the full blooming.
On the other hand several studies on the required chilling show the importance of climatic conditions during the dormancy for having a normal growth of the flower buds.
When the chilling requirement is not satisfied, the blossoming is late, the number of the flowers is reduced and may be found more anomalies in the flower buds (Crossa Raynaud, 1955; Breviglieri, 1958; Tabuenca, 1968; Legave, 1978). Finally some anomalies as, for istance, the degeneration of ovules may be due to genetic causes as reported by Eaton (1965).
The object of this study, carried out on the flower morphology of some Apricot varieties, is to point out the possible anomalies and estimate their influence on the productivity of the single varieties.