Articles
RESPONSE OF THREE YEAR OLD SWEET CHERRY TREES (PRUNUS AVIUM L.) CV. BING TO SUMMER PRUNING
Bing orchard, located in Curicó, Chile, was pruned on two dates (at the end of December 1994 and of January 1995) on which 33% and 66% of the season growth was removed.
Twenty three-year-old trees were selected, sixteen were pruned and four were not pruned.
Each tree required three principal branches with three new shoots.
On the pruned branches the number of regrowths, their elongation, diameter, number of leaves and leaf area were measured.
All the pruned trees had regrowth.
The early pruning fostered regrowth in length, but not in number.
However, delaying the pruning and increasing its severity, increased the number of spurs produced.
Only the 66% pruning treatment made in January decreased the shoot growth.
The leaf number increased with summer pruning.
Leaf area decreased when pruning was delayed; the apical and basal regrowths diameters were smaller when pruned in January.
Shoot diameter was not affected by summer pruning.
Finally, the flower and fruit number recorded on pruned trees indicated an earlier production, but the amount of fruit harvested was not significantly different from the non-pruned trees.
The development of young trees can be reduced by a strong pruning in January.