Private Bag X11208,

The 'Pinkerton ' avocado is well known for its long flowering period resulting in differences in fruit maturity at harvesting stage. A previous study (Sippel, Conradie & Claassens., 1992) showed that different fruitset periods have an effect on fruit growth rate (FGR). This phenomenon caused late-set fruit to grow faster than early-set fruit, giving rise to larger (but slightly less mature) fruit at harvesting stage. This study was aimed at manipulating flowering and fruitset by limiting fruitset to a specific period through flower and fruitlet removal. This was done during 1992 using two 'Pinkerton ' orchards, one at Kiepersol and another at Heidelberg (White River). Treatment 1 (August set) consisted of allowing fruit to set normally until August 2