Effect of pruning regimes on the production of passion fruit in Eldorado do Sul, RS, Brazil

Este trabalho, realizado em Eldorado do Sul, RS, teve como objetivo verificar o efeito de cinco intensidades de poda sobre a produção do maracujá-amarelo (Passiflora edulis f. flavicarpa Deg.), nas safras de 1987 e 1988. As plantas foram conduzidas em espaldeiras com dois fios, com o primeiro fio a 1,20 m e o segundo a 1,80 m da superfície do solo. A poda consistiu em deixar o ramo principal com diferentes comprimentos, a saber: 1,50 m; 3,00 m; 3,60 m; 5,10 m e 6,60 m. As colheitas de frutos ocorreram nos períodos de abril a agosto de 1987 e de janeiro a junho de 1988. A análise das duas safras, efetuada separadamente, mostrou que os níveis de intensidade de poda não influíram na produção por planta, por hectare e nem sobre o peso médio dos frutos. Entretanto, no conjunto das duas safras, o peso médio dos frutos foi superior quando foi realizada a poda do ramo principal a 1,50 m, comparado com os resultados das podas do ramo principal a 5,10 m e 6,60 m.This research was carried out at the Estação Experimental Agronômica (Experimental Research Station) in Eldorado do Sul, RS, Brazil (30o60'S, 51o39'W), aiming to assess the effect of five pruning regimes on the production of Passion fruit, in 1987 and 1988. Passion fruit plants propagated by seeds were trained as cordon leaning the branches on two steel wires apart 0.60 m from each other, the first at 1.20 m and the second one at 1.80 m from the ground. Pruning regimes consisted of cutting off the tip of the main branch leaving only one leader, per plant, with different length according to the following treatments: 1.50 m; 3.00 m; 3.60 m; 5.10 m and 6.60 m. Picking was done in two distinct periods: from April to August, in 1987, and from January to June, in 1988. When the yields of each year were analysed separately, pruning treatments did not affect either the production per plant or per area, nor the mean fruit weight. However, when they were analysed together, the mean fruit weight of treatment 1 was higher than those of treatments 4 and 5, and not different statistically from those of treatments 2 and 3