Rootstocks Influence Yield Precocity, Productivity, and Pre-Harvest Fruit Drop of Mandared Pigmented Mandarin

Abstract

Citrus fruit quality and scion productivity are influenced by the choice of rootstock. We aimed to evaluate the effect of rootstocks on yield and fruit quality of Mandared, a triploid pigmented mandarin. To do so, we established a rootstock field trial on a high pH soil (8.6) in which Mandared was grafted onto 11 rootstocks. These included some standard rootstocks, such as trifoliate orange ((Poncirus trifoliata (L.) Raf.), Troyer citrange (Citrus sinensis (L.) Osb. × P. trifoliata), Swingle citrumelo (Citrus paradisi Macf. × P. trifoliata), and C35 citrange (C. sinensis × P. trifoliata), as well as new releases from the Council for Agricultural Research and Economics (CREA, Acireale, Italy) and the University of California Riverside (UCR). The cumulative yield was measured over five consecutive years, while fruit quality was analyzed for two years. The trees on C35, C57 (Citrus sunki Hort. ex. Tan. × P. trifoliata), and C22 (C. sunki × P. trifoliata), started to set fruits one year earlier than the others. The trees on C57 provided some of the highest cumulative yields and canopy volumes. The production of Mandared grafted onto C57 was double that of Mandared grafted onto Troyer, while Mandared grafted onto C35 and C22 resulted in the best yield efficiency. The trees on Swingle and C57 significantly reduced the pre-harvest fruit drop, to which Mandared is particularly sensitive. However, grafting Mandared onto Swingle resulted in the highest variation among replicates, probably due to its high sensitivity to iron chlorosis. Most of the fruit quality parameters, such as fruit size, total soluble solids (TSS), and acidity were not significantly different among the rootstock treatments. However, fruits produced by Mandared grafted onto C22 had one of the highest rates of anthocyanin accumulation. The results indicate that C57, C35, and C22 were the most suitable rootstocks for Mandared in South-Eastern Sicily.

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“…× P. trifoliata (F5P12, F6P12, F6P13) that demonstrated high yield in field trials with several different scions ( Reforgiato Recupero et al, 2009 ). In a recent rootstock trial with triploid Mandared scion in Siracusa (Italy), this team found that some of the rootstocks from California (including C35) were superior to the CREA hybrids ( Caruso et al, 2020 ).…”

Molecular Insights into the Effects of Rootstocks on Maturation of Blood Oranges

“…Ripening index (RI) represents the ratio between TSS and TA. Juice colour was recorded with a Minolta CR-400 chroma meter (Minolta Corp., Osaka, Japan), as described by Caruso et al [15]. The results were expressed as citrus colour index (CCI = a*1000/L*b), a maturation index widely used in the citrus industry [32].…”

“…The use of different citrus rootstocks can significantly influence the timing of fruit development, ripening, and harvesting of pigmented fruits, as well as modifying their final chemical composition [15]. Ordóñez-Díaz et al [16] drew attention to the strong influence of rootstock on the composition of some bioactive compounds developed during fruit maturation in the cvs.…”

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“…However, these traits are strongly dependent on the environment and its interaction with scion and rootstock genotypes. Some rootstocks also induce fast production of the grafted variety [7].…”