Samples from 'Stanley', 'Vânăt de Italia' and 'Tuleu Gras' plum cultivars were collected from two different positions of the tree crown (i.e., inside, and periphery of the crown) at six different harvesting times, starting with the phase when plum fruits were the size of a bean until they reached full maturity at 21 days intervals. The main phytochemicals of plum skin during fruit development were analyzed. Total polyphenols from plum skin showed variations throughout the fruit growth (200.6 to 1244.5 mg GAE 100g -1 ), a relatively ascending trend being noticed. For 'Stanley' DPPH-Scavenging Activity, statistically insignificant differences (p > 0.05), with values between 47.4% and 51.5%, were found, similar trends being observed for 'Vânăt de Italia' and 'Tuleu Gras'. The total flavonoid content in the analyzed plum fruits statistically significantly decreased (p < 0.05) from fructification to ripening for 'Stanley' and 'Tuleu Gras'. On the other hand, variations were registered for 'Vânăt de Italia' cultivar which had the highest flavonoid content on the sixth harvesting phase. Anthocyanin content accumulated in 'Vânăt de Italia' plum peel showed increasing values during fruit development, regardless of the harvesting phase, variety or position, while a slightly decreasing trend was found for 'Stanley' and 'Tuleu Gras' varieties. The largest quantity of total chlorophyll (287.4 µg g -1 ) was found in the fructification phase, followed by a continuous decrease until ripening, whatever the variety or crown position.

The influence of rootstock on the growth and fruiting of three sweet cherry cultivars ('Bigarreau Burlat', 'Kordia', 'Regina') was studied under the pedoclimatic conditions of Cluj-Napoca, Romania, in 2014-2016. The trees were grafted on Gisela 5 rootstock, trained as Zahn Spindle and the orchard had a density of 1666 trees/ha. Root were cut twice, at 50 cm distance from the trunk, in an angle of 45° and 30 cm depth, as followed: first time, to the autumn, in fall leaves time, on one side of the row and the second time, in spring, at blooming time, at the other side of the row. The rootstocks influenced height of the trees, the shoot growth, the number of long and fruiting branches, trunk cross sectional area yield and precocity, with differences statistically assured. The longest shoots, in mean values, gave the variant with cultivars grafted on Mahaleb rootstock (111.7 cm). 'Gisela 5' rootstock decreases the average length of annual growth (93.3 cm). Trees grafted on Mahaleb formed more long fruiting branches and fewer short fruiting branches than those grafted on 'Gisela 5'. The biggest average trunks cross sectional area were obtained for the cultivars grafted on Mahaleb (62.1 cm 2 ). Also rootstocks influenced the height of the trees. The cumulative yield was almost double in variants where the trees were grafted on 'Gisela 5' (23.2kg/tree), compared to the variants where the trees were grafted on Mahaleb (13.1 kg/tree).

Abstract:The tree-growing sector is considered to be an important supplier of food and raw material for industry worldwide. Increasingly competitive decisions regarding international investment in orchards depend on business analysis. This study compares three apple orchards situated in Cluj-Napoca, on the Eastern limits of the Transylvanian Plain, Romania. While the climatic and soil conditions are relatively consistent among the three orchards, the technical and economic results (expressed in hectares) vary due to the use of three different technological systems of apple production: extensive, intensive, and super-intensive. The study compares the life cycle, starting with age of fructification, production level (quantity and quality), costs (investment and production costs-divided into material costs, mechanical costs, human costs, and overhead costs), income, profit (including rate of profit), and investment efficiency: Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), and Payback Period (PP). It was observed that the most economically efficient technological system in terms of investments is the super-intensive one, with a higher production level, a higher share of Extra Class apples, and a younger age of initial fructification. However OPEN ACCESSSustainability 2015, 7 10522 certain inconveniences of this system-such as a more expensive investment, a higher cost of running the business throughout the year, and a reduced life cycle-cannot be ignored.

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