Abstract
To establish a labor-saving cultivation method, we investigated the effect of espalier-training on tree growth and the improvement of working posture of grape rootstock mother trees. The trunk of ‘Kober 5BB’ grown by espalier were 55cm, compared to those grown by trellis training of 172cm. The result showed that the working time did not differ between trees grown by espalier and trees grown by trellis training. In shoot management, the forward bending work time in espalier section was 6 minutes 6 seconds longer than trellis training section, while raising arm work time in espalier section was 60 minutes 33 seconds shorter than in trellis training. The total time of the forward bending and raising arms above the shoulders in espalier was 13 minutes 29 seconds, which was 67 minutes 56 seconds shorter than in trellis training. There was no difference in the number of scions per the tree. However, the scions per ground area covered by tree canopy in espalier were 72.5, which was more than 7.3 in trellis training. A similar trend was observed for tree growth and other factors on ‘Hybrid franc’. These results suggest that espalier for scion-producing mother trees of grapevine rootstock is a method that reduce the work burden.
