Early tree growth, productivity, fruit quality and leaf nutrients content of sweet cherry grown in a high density planting system

Abstract

From 2008 to 2013 the phenology, early tree growth, precocity, yield, fruit quality attributes and leaf nutrient status of four sweet cherry cultivars (May Early, Germersdorfer, Sunburst and Celeste) were evaluated on Colt rootstock in the Cacak region (Serbia) with 1,250 trees/ha. The soil type was heavy and acidic. The results showed that cv. May Early blossomed and ripened earlier than the other cultivars, and had the highest tree vigour, better yield performance and the poorest fruit physico-chemical attributes. The best fruit quality was found in cv. Sunburst which is categorized as a low precocious cultivar with small yield capacity. Lower tree vigour, good productivity and fruit quality were shown by cv. Celeste. In general, leaf analysis indicated that all cultivars had excessive levels of N and Cu, and in some cases P, whereas K, Ca, Mg, Fe, Mn, Zn and B were deficient in all cultivars. The best balanced nutritional values (∑DOP) were observed in cv. Sunburst, whereas wider imbalance was observed in cv. Celeste for macronutrients. In contrast, the ∑DOP for micronutrients indicated that cv. Celeste had the best balanced nutritional values, whereas cv. Sunburst had the worst.