Flowering Habits of Fruit and Nut Crops

HORT 319 Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Plant Development Stages

Juvenile phase
Not inducible to flower Basal portion remains juvenile Rooting ease

Adult phase
Minimum size, delayed by slow growth Apple, 16-20 nodes Non flowering adult phase varies with spp/cv
HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Plant Development Stages

Juvenile phase Adult phase Effect of budding

Use adult bud Flower more rapidly than seedling

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Flowering Habits
Summer before

Same year
Quince Strawberry

Most initiate the summer before flowering

Stone fruit Apple and pear Blackberry Blueberry Grape Kiwi Fig Pecan - male Walnut Pistachio Persimmon
HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Fig Pecan - female

Flowering Habits

May coincide with fruit development Crop load, culture, and climate at this time affects next years crop
Bloom
Fruit bud development Fruit development Leaf fall -2C to -8 C Deacclimation -21C to -28C Endodormancy or Rest

Chilling

Bloom Heat Accum.

Endodormancy

Growth begins

Spring

Summer

Fall
HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Winter

Spring

Age of Fruiting Wood

Current Season
Quince Strawberry Fig

One-year Old
Peach Almond Persimmon Blackberry Blueberry Grape Kiwi Pistachio Pecan-male

Two-year Both 1&2Old Spurs year

Cherry Apple Pear Plum Apricot

Pecan-female

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Alternate Bearing

Cycle of alternating heavy and light cropping years

Apples, pecans, plums, apricots, pistachios

Due to poor flower initiation during heavy cropping year

Response to developing embryo GA inhibits flower bud initiation Nutrients do not appear deficient

Management: control the crop load

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Factors Affecting Fruit Bud Initiation

Precocity: Scion and rootstock Pruning

On young trees encourage vigorous growth

Bending
Encourages fruit bud initiation

Girdling
May increase if done early spring
HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Effect of bending on flowering

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Factors Affecting Fruit Bud Initiation

Chemicals
Thinning agents Hormones - auxin and GA

Tree Growth Rate Crop Load Environmental Factors

Good nutrition Excessive heat/drought Insufficient chill

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Pollination
Pollinator

vs. Pollinizer

Pollinator is the agent of pollen transfer (e.g., a bee) Pollinizer is the source of pollen

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Pollination

Importance of Pollination
Needed for fruit set Seed development affects fruit growth

Fruit shape Fruit size

Cross pollination can enhance set over self pollination

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Pollination

Wind pollination
Pecans, walnuts, pistachios, filberts

Insect pollination
Pome fruit Stone fruit Small fruit

Parthenocarpic set
Persimmons, common figs, and some pears
HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Pollination: Terminology

Self compatible or self incompatible Self fertile or self sterile Self fruitful or self unfruitful

Monoecious Dichogamous Protogynous Protandrous Dioecious

Staminate plant Pistillate plant

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Wind Pollination Pecans and Walnuts

Dichogamous Monecious Self fertile

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Wind Pollination Pecans and Walnuts

Types of varieties
Protandrous = male 1st Protogynous = female 1st

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Wind Pollination Pecans and Walnuts

Pawnee Cheyenne Wichita Choctaw

Protandrous
Protandrous Protogynous Protogynous

Catkins shedding pollen Female flowers receptive

Pollen shed best

Low humidity (< 85% relative humidity) Slight breeze
HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Wind Pollination Pecans and Walnuts

Timing of pollen shed and female receptivity varies with the climate
Cool climate Hot climate Catkins shedding pollen Female flowers receptive

Protandrous

Thus in pecans orchards, 3 complementary cultivars are recommended

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Wind Pollination Pistachios

Dioecious One staminate plant per 10 pistillate plants recommended

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Insect Pollination: Pollinizer Need of Crops

Self fruitful
Peach Apricots* European plums* Tart cherry Strawberry Blackberry Highbush blueberry Grapes Walnuts+ Pecans+

Self unfruitful
Apple Pear Asian plums Sweet cherry* Almonds* Rabbiteye blueberry Lowbush blueberry

* also self fruitful/unfruitful types, + dichogamous so need pollinizers

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Insect Pollination: Pollinizer Choice

Cross

compatibility of varieties Bloom overlap Pollen production Culturally compatibility Comparable pest/disease management needs Produce good fruit if possible
HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Pollinizers for Asian Plums

Range from self fertile to self incompatible
Laroda Laroda Mariposa Queen Rosa Santa Rosa Mariposa

Queen Rosa Santa Rosa

O F G G

F O F F

G F G G

G F G F

O = Self unfruitful; F = Fair fruit set most years; G = Good fruit set most years.

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Triploids, self fertility, sports, late blooming

Pollinated variety
Mac spur Mc Intosh Golden Delicious Mutsu Northern Spy

Pollinizers for Apples

Macspur McIntosh G. Delicious Mutsu Northern Spy

P P G P P

P P G P P

G G F P G

G G G P G

P P G P P

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Pollinizers for Apples

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Pollinizers for cherries

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Pollinizers for Sweet Cherries

Gametophytic incompatibility

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Fruit Set Needed for a Full Crop

Pollination:

Small fruited crops

Range is 40% to 100% Commonly 60% to 70%

Large fruited crops

Range 2% to 25% Commonly 3% to 10%

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Factors affecting Fruit Set

Competing blooms attract pollinators Temperature

Pollination:

Pollen tube growth Egg viability

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Effective Pollination Period in Pear

Temp. C (F) 10-15 (50-59) 8-9 (46-48) 5-7 (41-45) Pollen tube growth to ovule 4 Ovule viability Effective Fertilization pollination probability period 6 High

Pollination:

10

10

13

Medium

13

13

None

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Pollinators Pollen Transporters

Most common: European honey bee

Hives are rented to orchardists

Others bees
Wild bees: both honey and bumblebees Difficult to manage Normally adequate for small orchard

Africanized bees or KILLER BEES

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Africanized Honey Bee

Hybrid bee between

African bee European honey bee

European honey bee on left, African honey bee, right.

Stings are equally venomous Behaviors very different

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Pollinators Africanized Honey Bees

1957 into Brazil Very defensive of nest

Only attack if provoked

Swarm more often

4-8x vs. 1/5x per year

Less selective about nesting sites Produce more offspring Store less honey
HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Factors Affecting Bee Activity

Pollinators

Pesticide applications
Very susceptible to many insecticides Sevin, Diazinon, Parathion

Weather conditions
Wind (10-20 mph) Rain Temperature (10C or 50F)
HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Pollination Management

Hive density
1-4 per acre More hives

In poor weather With small fruited crops

Hive position
Normally hives are clustered Face south - warm up quicker Protected from wind
HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Pollination Management

Pollinizer distribution
Entire row every 4th row Every 3rd tree per 3rd row

Alternate pollen sources if low pollen production

Graft pollinizer branches Bouquets Beehive inserts Spray, puff, or by hand
HORT 319 - Temperate Fruit and Nut Production

Any Questions?