Influence of Growth Retardants on Vegetative Growth of Apple (Malus × domestica Borkh.) Cultivars under High Density Planting System
Shabnam Ahad *
Division of Fruit Science, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Shalimar-Srinagar-190025 (J&K), India.
Shamim A. Simnani
Division of Fruit Science, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Shalimar-Srinagar-190025 (J&K), India.
M. K. Sharma
Division of Fruit Science, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Shalimar-Srinagar-190025 (J&K), India.
Shakeel A. Mir
Division of Statistics, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Shalimar-Srinagar 190025 (J&K), India.
S. A. Bhat
Division of Basic Science and Humanities, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Shalimar-Srinagar-190025 (J&K), India.
Imtiyaz Murtaza
Division of Basic Science and Humanities, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Shalimar-Srinagar-190025 (J&K), India.
Sumaya Mumtaz
Division of Fruit Science, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Shalimar-Srinagar-190025 (J&K), India.
Shahida Ashraf
Division of Fruit Science, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Shalimar-Srinagar-190025 (J&K), India.
Mehnigar Hamid
Division of Fruit Science, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Shalimar-Srinagar-190025 (J&K), India.
Insha Majid
Division of Fruit Science, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Shalimar-Srinagar-190025 (J&K), India.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
The present investigation entitled “Regulation of growth, fruiting and biochemical characteristics in Fuji Zehn Aztec and Red Braeburn apple cultivars through application of growth retardants under high density planting system” was conducted in the Experimental Block of the Division of Fruit Science at Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology of Kashmir, Shalimar campus, Srinagar (J&K) during the years 2020 and 2021. Four-year-old apple cultivars Fuji Zehn Aztec and Red Braeburn on M9-T337 planted at a distance of 3×1 meter of uniform age, vigor and girth were used for the study. The experiment comprising of seven treatments viz., control, prohexadione-calcium @125 ppm, prohexadione-calcium @250 ppm, prohexadione-calcium @500 ppm, paclobutrazol @200 ppm, paclobutrazol @400 and paclobutrazol@600 ppm was laid out in randomized complete design with three replications. The chemicals were sprayed one week after petal fall, three weeks after 1st spray and three weeks after 2nd spray. Paclobutrazol@600 ppm resulted in maximum reduction in vegetative growth parameters in both the apple cultivars under study.
Keywords: Rootstocks, yield, fruit quality