Autochthonous Cherry Rootstock Germplasm in the Context of Sustainable Sweet Cherry Production

Sustainability of fruit production is becoming a necessity in the time of climate changes and severe environmental issues, including decreasing water availability and biodiversity loss. To overcome these difficulties in sweet cherry production, we aimed to investigate the autochthonous cherry germpl...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Tijana Narandžić, Mirjana Ljubojević
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-12-01
Series:Horticulturae
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/9/1/37
_version_ 1797441777142071296
author Tijana Narandžić
Mirjana Ljubojević
author_facet Tijana Narandžić
Mirjana Ljubojević
author_sort Tijana Narandžić
collection DOAJ
description Sustainability of fruit production is becoming a necessity in the time of climate changes and severe environmental issues, including decreasing water availability and biodiversity loss. To overcome these difficulties in sweet cherry production, we aimed to investigate the autochthonous cherry germplasm as a source of adaptable, size-controlling and productive rootstocks. The performance of sweet cherry cultivar ‘Summit’ grafted on six rootstock candidates and ‘Gisela 5’ as a control has been assessed in semi-arid climate, in conditions without irrigation and pruning, and with minimal herbicides’ application. The qualitative (anchorage, suckering, vitality), vegetative (trunk cross sectional area—TCSA, tree dimensions) and generative (potential and achieved yielding, fruit quality) characteristics were investigated. All candidates provided adequate anchorage while three candidates did not form suckers. Trees on ‘Gisela 5’ showed the lowest vitality. The scion TCSA in the fifth vegetation ranged from 16.7 to 47.2 cm<sup>2</sup>, while tree height, crown width and depth were up to 293, 150 and 175 cm, respectively. In sixth vegetation, the yield reached 4.1 kg. The average fruit mass in the trial of 2020–2021 was 8 g, fruit width was up to 27.5 cm, while the dry matter content reached 19%. The study showed that with the proper rootstock selection, sweet cherries could achieve satisfactory growth and yield without harming the environment and with minimal orchard’s maintenance practices. Within investigated autochthonous material, candidate PC_02_01/4 induced the best performance of ‘Summit’ cultivar.
first_indexed 2024-03-09T12:30:59Z
format Article
id doaj.art-b0b4da9599e549c09150cb166f2ccf68
institution Directory Open Access Journal
issn 2311-7524
language English
last_indexed 2024-03-09T12:30:59Z
publishDate 2022-12-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Horticulturae
spelling doaj.art-b0b4da9599e549c09150cb166f2ccf682023-11-30T22:30:00ZengMDPI AGHorticulturae2311-75242022-12-01913710.3390/horticulturae9010037Autochthonous Cherry Rootstock Germplasm in the Context of Sustainable Sweet Cherry ProductionTijana Narandžić0Mirjana Ljubojević1University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Agriculture, 21000 Novi Sad, SerbiaUniversity of Novi Sad, Faculty of Agriculture, 21000 Novi Sad, SerbiaSustainability of fruit production is becoming a necessity in the time of climate changes and severe environmental issues, including decreasing water availability and biodiversity loss. To overcome these difficulties in sweet cherry production, we aimed to investigate the autochthonous cherry germplasm as a source of adaptable, size-controlling and productive rootstocks. The performance of sweet cherry cultivar ‘Summit’ grafted on six rootstock candidates and ‘Gisela 5’ as a control has been assessed in semi-arid climate, in conditions without irrigation and pruning, and with minimal herbicides’ application. The qualitative (anchorage, suckering, vitality), vegetative (trunk cross sectional area—TCSA, tree dimensions) and generative (potential and achieved yielding, fruit quality) characteristics were investigated. All candidates provided adequate anchorage while three candidates did not form suckers. Trees on ‘Gisela 5’ showed the lowest vitality. The scion TCSA in the fifth vegetation ranged from 16.7 to 47.2 cm<sup>2</sup>, while tree height, crown width and depth were up to 293, 150 and 175 cm, respectively. In sixth vegetation, the yield reached 4.1 kg. The average fruit mass in the trial of 2020–2021 was 8 g, fruit width was up to 27.5 cm, while the dry matter content reached 19%. The study showed that with the proper rootstock selection, sweet cherries could achieve satisfactory growth and yield without harming the environment and with minimal orchard’s maintenance practices. Within investigated autochthonous material, candidate PC_02_01/4 induced the best performance of ‘Summit’ cultivar.https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/9/1/37adaptabilityfruit qualitygrowth‘Oblačinska’ sour cherry<i>Prunus cerasus</i><i>Prunus fruticosa</i>
spellingShingle Tijana Narandžić
Mirjana Ljubojević
Autochthonous Cherry Rootstock Germplasm in the Context of Sustainable Sweet Cherry Production
Horticulturae
adaptability
fruit quality
growth
‘Oblačinska’ sour cherry
<i>Prunus cerasus</i>
<i>Prunus fruticosa</i>
title Autochthonous Cherry Rootstock Germplasm in the Context of Sustainable Sweet Cherry Production
title_full Autochthonous Cherry Rootstock Germplasm in the Context of Sustainable Sweet Cherry Production
title_fullStr Autochthonous Cherry Rootstock Germplasm in the Context of Sustainable Sweet Cherry Production
title_full_unstemmed Autochthonous Cherry Rootstock Germplasm in the Context of Sustainable Sweet Cherry Production
title_short Autochthonous Cherry Rootstock Germplasm in the Context of Sustainable Sweet Cherry Production
title_sort autochthonous cherry rootstock germplasm in the context of sustainable sweet cherry production
topic adaptability
fruit quality
growth
‘Oblačinska’ sour cherry
<i>Prunus cerasus</i>
<i>Prunus fruticosa</i>
url https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/9/1/37
work_keys_str_mv AT tijananarandzic autochthonouscherryrootstockgermplasminthecontextofsustainablesweetcherryproduction
AT mirjanaljubojevic autochthonouscherryrootstockgermplasminthecontextofsustainablesweetcherryproduction