The effect of organic fertilizers and thinning methods on quality parameters and the yield on apple cultivars ‘Aroma’ and ‘Discovery’ in Norway

摘要

In Norway, apple growers with the packinghouses are focused in medium size apples for 6-pack consumer packages when it comes to cultivar ‘Aroma’. ‘Aroma’ can have an excessive and uneven fruit set and therefore there is a growing need to find out method to reduce the fruit size of cv. ‘Aroma’. 'Discovery' is rather small-fruited cultivar, hence more even and bigger size fruit is desired. In our study, different thinning methods with two different types of organic fertilizers were used to influence the fruit size and the yield. Our hypothesis was that organic fertilizers provide optimal nutrient ranges during the growing season to cultivars ‘Aroma’ and the ‘Discovery’ and have a positive effect on the yield and quality parameters.