Peach trees are temperate climate fruit trees most planted in subtropical and tropical regions. This advance of the peach crop is mainly due to the introduction of less cold-demanding new cultivar varieties and which require using less specific techniques, such as plant growth regulators and pruning. Within this context, the objective of this work was to evaluate phenological aspects and the yield potential of the cultivars Granada, Aurora-1, Dourado-2, Douradao, Big-Aurora, Marli and Chiripá, grafted onto the “Okinawa” rootstock, planted in the region of Sao Manuel-SP, during two cultivation cycles. The experimental design used was a completely randomized design with 7 treatments and 5 replicates, with the experimental unit represented by two plants.”Granada” had early harvest in mid-September, and “Chiripá” in late November and early December, in which the former was the early-ripening cultivar and the latter was the late-ripening one. “Aurora-1” and “Dourado-2”, had the highest yield values, 18.95 and 16.57 t·ha-1 respectively, followed by “Big-Aurora” with yield values of 12.13 t·ha-1. For subtropical regions, such as São Manuel-SP, less cold-demanding cultivars are recommended, such as Aurora-1, Dourado-2 and Big-Aurora. The planting of early- and late-ripening varieties, such as Granada and Chiripá, respectively, is an interesting alternative for producers wanting to scale their production.
Brazil is the thirteenth largest peach producer yielding 220.739 tons in an area of 20.194 ha. The main producing states are Rio Grande do Sul, Sao Paulo and Santa Catarina, accounting for 60%, 17% and 6% of the national production, respectively, [
When peach trees are grown in regions with insufficient cold winters, they may experience symptoms such as delayed and longer flowering times, lower flowering and budding percentage, and consequently reduced yields, exhibiting non-uniform and low quality fruits, are characteristics of poorly adapted plants [
Some cultivars required 75 - 150 hours of cold, while others require over 700 hours of cold. The most planted cultivars in Brazil require between 100 and 500 hours of cold below 7.2˚C, accumulated from May to September, to complete the dormancy period [
The evaluation of the phenological and yield behavior of cultivars is a key to establishing and maintaining a culture in a particular region because it provides information about the adaptation of cultivars, helping to determine the time and intensity of management techniques such as thinning, pruning, fertilizing and harvesting.
According to Mounzer [
In São Paulo, the cultivation of the Douradao, Biuti, Aurora-1, Aurora-2 and Dourado-2 cultivars prevails in the peach-producing areas of the state. However, there are no reports on the behavior of Granada, Chiripá, Marli and Big-Aurora cultivars in the region of São Manuel. However, São Paulo has several peach producing regions, such as Jaú, Botucatu, Brotas and Paranapanema. Compared to the southern states of the country these regions have a milder climate, which enables an early harvest.
Within this context, the objective of this work was to evaluate aspects related to phenological and yield performance of the cultivars Granada, Aurora-1, Dourado-2, Big-Aurora, Douradao, Marli and Chiripáin Sao Manuel-SP, in order to provide peach growers of the region and areas with similar climate, alternatives to diversify the productive matrix.
This work was conducted at the Experimental Farm Sao Manuel of the School of Agricultural Sciences of UNESP, located at 22˚44'28''S and 48˚34'37'' and 740 m of altitude. The climate of Sao Manuel-SP, according to the Koppen classification, is Cfa, warm temperate (subtropical), with rainfall concentration in the months of November to April and average annual precipitation of 1.376, 70 mm in the municipality, with a mean temperature of the warmest month higher than 22˚C [
The experiment was conducted over two production cycles, 2009/2010 and 2010/2011. At the time, the plants were five years old, conducted in the bowl system, 4.0 m spacing between plants × 6.0 m between rows, in a non-irrigated experimental area. The experimental design used was a completely randomized design, with 7 treatments and 5 replicates, with the experimental unit represented by two plants.
“Granada”: introduced by EMBRAPA (Brazilian Company of Agricultural Research), its cold requirement is of approximately 300 hours (<7.2˚C). Its large fruits are firm, yellow, with slightly acidic flavor and soluble solids between 8˚ and 11˚ Brix. In Rio Grande do Sul, flowering occurs in August and the fruits ripen in December [
“Aurora-1”: introduced by the Agronomic Institute of Campinas (IAC), this cultivar requires less than 200 hours of cold. Its small yellow pulp fruits are firm and sweet. The soluble solids content oscillates around 14˚ Brix. In Rio Grande do Sul, flowering starts in August and fruit ripening in December [
“Dourado-2” (IAC 976-11): introduced by IAC, its large fruits are firm, juicy with yellow pulp and acidic sweet taste and soluble solids of up to 15˚Brix. The plants are vigorous and highly productive. In the state of São Paulo, the beginning of the fruit harvest occurs in November [
“Big-Aurora” (IAC 680-13): introduced by IAC, is an early cultivar, very vigorous and with excellent yields. It has had good yields in regions with less than 50 hours of cold accumulation. Its large fruits are oblong shaped, with firm pulp and with appropriate dual-purpose characteristics. The soluble solids content can reach up to 16˚ Brix [
“Douradao”: introduced by IAC, descendant of “Dourado-1”, exhibits medium vigor and compact growth. Its extra large fruits with sweet-acidulous pulp ripen in mid-October, with an average content of soluble solids of 16˚Brix and pH 4.5 [
“Marli”: introduced by EMBRAPA Cascata, it needs an average of 300 hours of cold (<7.2˚C). Its large fruits have white semi-free pulp, with soluble solids content between 12˚ and 14˚ Brix. In Rio Grande do Sul flowering occurs in August and can extend up to mid-September, harvest begins in December [
“Chiripá”: introduced by EMBRAPA, is a medium vigor cultivar and its cold demand is of 400 and 500 hours. Its medium to large fruits is firm with white flesh. The soluble solids content varies from 15˚ to 20˚ Brix. In Rio Grande do Sul its flowering occurs in late August and fruit ripening in January [
On 2009/06/20 and 2010/06/30 yield pruning was performed in all cultivars and immediately after plant dormancy was halted using a water-based solution of 0.5% hydrogen cyanamide (Dormex®) + 1.0% mineral oil (Assist®).
Phenological analyzes were performed every 3 to 4 days. Twelve 25 cm long mixed branches from each plant were evaluated, distributed across the circumference of the plant. The beginning of the budding and flowering stages was considered when, respectively, 5% of vegetative buds were in the green tip stage and 5% of the flowers were open. Full budding and full bloom, respectively, when 50% or more of the vegetative buds were at the green tip stage and when 50% of flowers were open. The end of each phenological phase was characterized when there were no vegetative buds sprouting or flowers open. The cycle of each cultivar was determined by monitoring 30 flowers of each plant (repetition), from anthesis to fruit ripening. The harvest time was determined by the interval between the time of the first and last harvest.
In the same branches used for the phenological analyzes, the relationship between flowering/vegetative buds and fruit retention of each cultivar was also determined, using the formulas:
Yield was determined by the total number of fruit harvested and kg of fruit yield per plant. The yield determined considered a stand of 417 plants ha−1 (t∙ha−1).
All cultivars began sprouting before flowering had begun. During the 2009/2010 and 2010/2011 crops, “Granada” reached full bloom, respectively, at 26 and 21 days after pruning and the break of dormancy, and “Chiripá” at 42 and 45 days, the first early-ripening and second late-ripening cultivar (
In 2009 and 2010, the full flowering of the cultivars Aurora-1, Dourado-2, Big-Aurora andDouradao occurred, respectively, at 29 and 31 days after the application of hydrogen cyanamide in the third week of July (
2009/2010 Crop | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cultivars | Application of H2CN2 | Beginning of budding | Full budding | Beginning of flowering | Full flowering | End of flowering | Duration of flowering (days) |
Granada | 19 June | 26 June | 03 July | 03 July | 14 July | 24 July | 21 |
Aurora-1 | 19 June | 30 June | 08 July | 08 July | 17 July | 31 July | 23 |
Dourado-2 | 19 June | 30 June | 08 July | 08 July | 17 July | 31 July | 23 |
Big-Aurora | 19 June | 30 June | 17 July | 08 July | 17 July | 31 July | 23 |
Douradao | 19 June | 03 July | 17 July | 14 July | 17 July | 28 July | 14 |
Marli | 19 June | 03 July | 21 July | 14 July | 21 July | 31 July | 17 |
Chiripá | 19 June | 24 July | 31 July | 24 July | 31 July | 28 Ago. | 33 |
2010/2011 Crop | |||||||
Cultivars | Application of H2CN2 | Beginning of budding | Full budding | Beginning of flowering | Full flowering | End of flowering | Duration of flowering (days) |
Granada | 30 June | 10 July | 17 July | 17 July | 21 July | 28 July | 11 |
Aurora-1 | 30 June | 10 July | 17 July | 17 July | 31 July | 07 Ago. | 20 |
Dourado-2 | 30 June | 10 July | 17 July | 17 July | 31 July | 07 Ago. | 20 |
Big-Aurora | 30 June | 10 July | 17 July | 17 July | 31 July | 07 Ago. | 20 |
Douradao | 30 June | 15 July | 29 July | 15 July | 31 July | 14 Ago. | 30 |
Marli | 30 June | 15 July | 29 July | 15 July | 07 Ago. | 21 Ago. | 36 |
Chiripá | 30 June | 08 July | 14 Ago. | 07 Ago. | 14 Ago. | 31 Ago. | 24 |
In the present work, the harvest period ranged from 4 to 24 days in 2009 and 11 to 26 days in 2010, respectively, for “Douradao” and “Chiripá” (
During the two evaluation years, “Granada” proved to be the earliest-ripening one among the cultivars studied, with its harvest period between late September and mid-October, and with the possibility of being sold before the harvest peak of the Southern regions, occurring in the months of November and December. “Chiripá” was the latest-ripening cultivar, with its harvest interval between late November and late December (
According to the Bruna classification [
During the two evaluation years, the relationship between flowering and vegetative buds ranged between 1.46 (Marli) and 2.27 (Douradão) (
2009/2010 Crop | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cultivars | Beginning of harvest | Harvest peak | End of harvest | Harvest range (days) | Cycle (days) |
Granada | 20 Sep. | 28 Sep. | 06 Oct. | 16 | 84 |
Aurora-1 | 14 Oct. | 21 Oct. | 30 Oct. | 16 | 98 |
Dourado-2 | 21 Oct. | 28 Oct. | 04 Nov. | 13 | 105 |
Big-Aurora | 28 Oct. | 28 Oct. | 04 Nov. | 06 | 105 |
Douradão | 30 Oct. | 04 Nov. | 04 Nov. | 04 | 105 |
Marli | 28 Oct. | 30 Oct. | 04 Nov. | 06 | 103 |
Chiripá | 26 Nov. | 15 Dec. | 20 Dec. | 24 | 121 |
2010 /2011 Crop | |||||
Cultivars | Beginning of harvest | Harvest peak | End of harvest | Harvest range (days) | Cycle (days) |
Granada | 25 Sep. | 02 Oct. | 16 Oct. | 22 | 80 |
Aurora-1 | 21 Oct. | 28 Oct. | 05 Nov. | 15 | 95 |
Dourado-2 | 28 Oct. | 01 Nov. | 12 Nov. | 14 | 102 |
Big-Aurora | 28 Oct. | 01 Nov. | 12 Nov. | 14 | 101 |
Douradão | 01 Nov. | 08 Nov. | 12 Nov. | 11 | 101 |
Marli | 01 Nov. | 08 Nov. | 17 Nov. | 16 | 106 |
Chiripá | 10 Dec. | 20 Dec. | 05 Jan. | 26 | 123 |
Cycle = period between beginning of flowering and fruit harvest.
Cultivars | Flower buds | Vegetative buds | GF/GV relationship | Fruit retention (%) | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2009 | 2010 | 2009 | 2010 | 2009 | 2010 | 2009 | 2010 | |
Granada | 14.66 cA | 16.32 cA | 9.33 aA | 10.02 aA | 1.57 cA | 1.62 cA | 24.85 cA | 28.98 cA |
Aurora-1 | 24.33 aA | 23.32 aA | 11.00 aA | 10.56 aA | 2.22 aA | 2.20 aA | 50.97 bB | 78.32 aA |
Dourado-2 | 20.00 bA | 18.76bA | 10.33 aA | 9.67 aA | 1.94 aA | 1.94 aA | 75.46 aA | 80.33 aA |
Big-Aurora | 19.66 bA | 18.88 bA | 9.66 aA | 8.98 aA | 2.03 bA | 2.10 bA | 72.24 aA | 75.56 aA |
Douradão | 20.33 bA | 18.34 bA | 9.00 aA | 8.07 aA | 2.27 aA | 2.27 aA | 35.68 cB | 49.56 bA |
Marli | 15.00 cA | 14.45 cA | 9.66 aA | 9.88 aA | 1.55 cA | 1.46 cA | 25.02 cA | 23.98 cA |
Chiripá | 23.33 aA | 22.28 aA | 10.66 aA | 10.22 aA | 2.19 aA | 2.18 aA | 11.60 dA | 10.88 dA |
Overall average | 19.91 | 18.90 | 9.95 | 9.62 | 1.96 | 1.97 | 42.26 | 49.65 |
C.V. (%) | 7.86 | 8.78 | 8.20 | 8.02 | 7.17 | 8.88 | 16.43 | 12.45 |
Means followed by the same lowercase letter in the column and uppercase letter on the line, do not differ significantly by the Scott-Knott test (p < 0.05). Yield considering a stand of 417 plants ha−1.
The percentage of fruit retention in the cultivars ranged from 11.60% to 75.46% in 2009 and from 10.88% to 80.33% in 2010, respectively, for the Chiripá and Dourado-2 cultivars (
The results achieved in our study are consistent with those found by Alves [
“Chiripá”, “Marli” and “Granada” had the lowest fruit retention rates, between 10.88 and 28.98% in 2009 and 2010 (
The 2010/2011 crop harvest showed significant yield increases for the Aurora-1, Big-Aurora and Douradao cultivars, compared to the 2009/2010 harvest. The other cultivars maintained their yield values (
“Aurora-1” had the highest yields, of 15.41 t∙ha−1 and 22.50 t∙ha−1, respectively, in 2009 and 2010 (
Nava [
The lowest yield values were for “Marli” and “Chiripá”, of 1.93 and 1.64 ton∙ha−1, respectively, in 2009, and of 1.97 and 1.40 ton∙ha−1, in 2010 (
The importance of breaking dormancy in the subtropical regions is emphasized, considering that quite often the cold hours needed are not fully satisfied, requiring to use compensating chemicals. The artificial breaking of dormancy, alone or combined with short pruning, increases the percentage of flowering, effective fructification and plant yields of the Granada cultivar [
Of the cultivars evaluated, “Granada” is the earliest-ripening cultivar, with harvest in mid-September, and “Chiripá” the latest-ripening one, with harvest in late November.
“Dourado-2”, “Big-Aurora” and “Aurora-1” exhibit the highest fruit retention percentage, “Marli” and “Chiripá” the lowest, and these results influence the yield values of the cultivars.
“Aurora-1” and “Dourado-2” are the most adapted and productive cultivars, hence suitable for peach cultivation in the region of São Manuel-SP.
“Chiripá”, “Marli”, “Granada” and “Douradao” exhibited the lowest yield potential for the region of São Manuel and require a longer evaluation period and improvement of cultivation technologies.
Cultivars | Number of fruits (unit∙plant−1) | Production (kg∙plant−1) | Yield (t∙ha−1) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2009/2010 | 2010/2011 | 2009/2010 | 2010/2011 | 2009/2010 | 2010/2011 | |
Granada | 83.33 cB | 179.66 cA | 8.83 cA | 11.46 dA | 3.68 cA | 4.78 dA |
Aurora-1 | 475.00 aB | 840.66 aA | 36.95 aB | 53.96 aA | 15.41 aB | 22.50 aA |
Dourado-2 | 428.33 aA | 454.66 bA | 39.06 aA | 40.47 bA | 16.28 aA | 16.87 bA |
Big-Aurora | 253.66 bB | 444.33 bA | 21.56 bB | 36.78 bA | 8.92 bB | 15.34 bA |
Douradão | 60.66 cB | 240.33 cA | 5.75 cB | 21.85 cA | 2.39 cB | 9.11 cA |
Marli | 42.33 cA | 44.01 cA | 4.63 cA | 3.93 eA | 1.93 cA | 1.64 eA |
Chiripá | 35.33 cA | 23.33 dA | 4.72 cA | 3.36 eA | 1.97 cA | 1.40 eA |
Overall average | 196.94 | 257.83 | 17.36 | 20.95 | 7.22 | 8.73 |
C.V. (%) | 20.18 | 15.79 | 19.33 | 15.67 | 19.33 | 15.67 |
Means followed by the same lowercase letter in the column and uppercase letter on the line, do not differ significantly by the Scott-Knott test (p < 0.05). Yield considering a stand of 417 plants∙ha−1.
The authors are grateful to FAPESP (Fundaçao de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo) for providing the Masters scholarship. Process: 08/52535-7; and to the staff of São Manuel Experimental Farm for their support in conducting the experiment.