Horticultural Studies (HortiS) 2022, Vol 39, Num, 3     (Pages: 102-106)

Relationships of Shading-Induced Reductions in Yield and Morphological Traits with Mineral Nutrition of Apple Trees

Kadir UÇGUN 1 ,Gökhan ÖZTÜRK 2 ,Mesut ALTINDAL 2

1 Karamanoğlu Mehmet Bey University, Technical Sciences Vocational School, Department of Plant and Animal Production, 70200, Karaman, Türkiye
2 Fruit Research Instiute, 32500, Isparta, Türkiye
DOI : 10.16882/HortiS.1196865 Viewed : 736 - Downloaded : 307 Protective nets are commonly used in orchards to prevent hail damage and sunburns. However, these nets partially prevent sunlight exposure of the trees. Sunlight directly influences plant physiology. In present study, the effects of reduced sunlight on mineral nutrition of trees were investigated. Experimental orchard had protective nets with different shading ratios (0, 32, 42 and 56%) for 7 years. In 8, 9 and 10th year of the orchard, to reveal relationships of protective nets and mineral nutrition, apple trees were sampled from part of leaves, bud, and flower and subjected to mineral analyses. Leaf nutrients were all influenced by light intensity and increasing N, K, Fe, Cu, Mn and B levels were observed with increasing shading ratios. In fruit buds, shading treatments all had more Ca, Fe and Cu concentrations. In flower samples, only P and Mg were significant and the lowest values were obtained from the greatest shading ratio. Nutrient ratios were assessed for each sample group and only the leaf nutrient ratios were significant. It was observed when the common ratios (N:K and K:Mg) were assessed that the greatest N:K ratio was obtained from the control treatment and the other treatments were placed into the same group; the lowest K:Mg ratio was obtained from the control treatment and the other treatments were placed into the same group. It couldn`t be detected relationships between decreasing yield, morphological traits and reduced sunlight with nutrient contents based on concentrations under experimental conditions. Keywords : Bud Flower Leaf Nutrient uptake Protective net