THE INFLUENCE OF 6-BENZYLADENINE ON GROWTH, FLOWERING AND FRUITING OF YOUNG BEARING APPLE TREES FOLLOWING TREATMENT AS NON-BEARING TREES

Young non-bearing ‘Delicious’ apple trees were treated with a single 300 ppm application of 6-Benzyladenine (BA) per year when trees were two, three and four years old to increase axillary bud break and stimulate additional branch development.
Six years after the BA treatment was initiated, and three years after it was discontinued, seven year old young bearing trees that had been BA treated averaged 177% greater yield than control.

Cumulative vegetative growth data for the six year period since treatment began showed a 47% increase in the total number of growing points.
This increase was divided between: a 48% increase in short spurs (<2 cm), a 128% increase in long spurs (2–4 cm) and a 3% decrease in shoots (>4 cm). Total length of shoot growth was reduced 46% with BA treatment and average growth per shoot was 44% less.
BA treatment resulted in an 82% increase in flower initiation.
Tree form was altered from a highly vigorous, upright tree with long terminal growth to a spreading, moderately vigorous and more productive form.

VI International Symposium on Growth Regulators in Fruit Production

C.R. Unrath

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.1989.239.39