Abstract
Pecans belonging to the same group as Japanese chestnut would be advantageous trees to extend the business cycle of tourism farming of chestnut trees in the autumn season. We investigated the flowering period of male and female flowers in twenty-five cultivars, and the harvest period and fruit quality in sixteen cultivars. It was observed that the female flower bloomed earlier than the male flower in most cultivars. However, there was an overlapping period of several days during the blooming of male and female flowers. Then we investigated the length of the male spike and flowering period of male flower. Blooming changed yearly and there was no correlation between the two. The harvest period lasted for two months, from early September to early November. Cultivars were classified into five groups; very early, early, middle, late and very late maturing. Fruit size was significantly larger in ‘CLS-61’ and ‘Dess’, very late maturing than the other cultivars. Two cultivars, ‘MISS-10’ and ‘CLS-61’ provided a fresh kernel weight of 7 g or more. There was no correlation between the harvesting time and kernel oil content.
In conclusion, cultivars with overlapping flowering periods of male and female flowers were identified. Harvest time of pecan trees in Wakayama Prefecture could be extended to two months by introducing cultivars from very early to very late maturing. ‘Pawnee’ and ‘MISS-10’ are promising cultivars for commercial production due to the large edible portion and high oil content.
