2005 Volume 4 Issue 2 Pages 165-170
Shoot tops (10 to 25 cm from apices) of one- and two-year-old ‘Fuji’ and ‘Akibae’ apple trees grafted onto M. 9 Nagano and Pajam 2 rootstocks were sprayed one to five times with 6-benzyladenine (BA, 300 ppm) to induce branch development in the nursery. It was observed that repeated spraying with BA increased the average number of lateral shoots per tree in both varieties of trees. Trees sprayed three to five times with BA produced significantly more branches than those receiving a single spray or untreated controls. The most effective treatments, five applications of BA to the new shoot tops of two-year-old ‘Fuji’ apple trees, produced an average of 14.3 lateral shoots (1 cm and longer) per tree, while single application produced 7.2 laterals per tree. Trunk diameter and tree height were not affected by the treatments.
