Original article

Influence of pruning intensity on light penetration and leaf physiology in high-density orchards of mango trees. Abstract – – Introduction. High–density orchards of ‘Amrapali ’ mango trees become overcrowded and show progressive decline in yield after 14–15 years of planting; hence, trees require pruning for sustainable production. Reduction in yield in such orchards is due to poor light interception and a low photosynthetic rate, which influence vegetative growth, flower initiation, fruit set and, thereby, the fruit yield. Hence, to help design a tree canopy for optimum plant growth and yield, we studied the effect of pruning on light interception and on dif