Volume 61 Number 1 Article 8 Pages: 38-43
Year 2007 Month 1
Title: Early Gibberellic Acid Sprays Increase Firmness and Fruit Size of 'Sweetheart' Sweet Cherry
Authors: F. Kappel and R. MacDonald
Citation
Abstract:
Growers in British Columbia, the U.S. Pacific Northwest and increasingly in other regions of the world apply
gibberellic acid (GA) to increase fruit size, improve fruit firmness and delay maturity of sweet cherries (Prunus
avium L.). The recommendation in BC has been to apply a single spray of 20 ppm GA at the straw-yellow stage
of fruit development.
The objective of this trial was to determine if the timing of the gibberellic acid spray has an
effect on ‘Sweetheart’ sweet cherry fruit yield and quality.
Treatments consisted of four timings of 20 ppm GA
beginning in mid-June.
There were two applications before the straw-yellow stage, the third spray coincided with
the straw-yellow stage, and the fourth timing was about one week later.
Fruit were harvested when non-treated
control fruit were mature, and again one week later.
Yield per tree, average fruit weight, rain-induced cracking,
fruit firmness, total soluble solids, pH, and titratable acidity were determined for a sub-sample of fruit.
Yield was
not affected by the GA treatment.
Fruit size was increased by about 1 g per fruit and fruit firmness increased by
15% when treated with GA. Fruit size and fruit firmness responded linearly to the GA applications with earlier
sprays having the largest and firmest fruit.
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