Influence of Pollination Methods on Quantity and Quality of Date (Phoenix dactylifera 'Kabkab')

摘要

Fifteen year-old date palms (Phoenix dactylifera 'Kabkab') were pollinated by four different methods (hand pollination (HP), hand duster (HD), embedded male inflorescence in spadix (EM) and motorized duster (MD)) in Bushehr province, Iran, in 2009 to 2010. Fruit set, fruit volume, fruit fresh weight and total yield per palm were different depending on the pollination method. The EM method produced the highest yield per tree and fruit set (18.6 fruits/strand), while, the lowest fruit set and yield per tree was obtained with the MD method. The HP method produced the largest fruits. There was no significant difference in date of fruit ripening. Sugars, pH, titratable acidity percentages and fruit moisture were determined at mature stage 'Tamr'. The higher the pollen concentration applied by the EM, the more efficient was the fruit set.