GROWTH, PRODUCTION AND FRUIT QUALITY OF PERSIAN LIMEON 11 ROOTSTOCKS

SUMMARY Due to the major importance of 'Persian', Citrus latifolia Tan., or Tahiti lime trees in Venezuela, for internal consumption as well as for exporting purposes, research in the evaluation of new rootstocks adequate to tropical agroenvironmental conditions is required. The objective of the present study is the evaluation of 'Persian' lime grafted on rootstocks C-61-103-1, FF-1131-20, HRS-801, HRS-802, HRS-809, HRS-812, HRS-934, HRS-942, HRS-954, 'Volkamer' lemon Citrus volkameriana Pasq. and 'Cleopatra' mandarin Citrus reshni Hort. Ex Tan. Parameters evaluated were, tree growth, tree efficiency, fruit quality and percentage of live trees. Experiment was located in the experimental field of the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Agropecuarias (CENIAP) Maracay, Venezuela (10o 13' NL y 67o 37' WL, 455 masl), with a Fluventic Haplustolls soil, 26 oC mean temperature and 950 mm mean precipitation. It was planted in a randomized block design with two plants per experimental unit and three repetitions. Preliminary results indicated that trees on FF-1-131-20 rootstock exhibited greater tree growth, in terms of tree height and trunk area, whereas trees on HRS-954 developed a greater canopy volume. Rootstocks HRS-809, HRS-954, HRS812 and HRS-942 promoted highest yields, fruit quality and tree efficiency while 'Cleopatra' and 'Volkameriana' induced the opposite. Fruit diameter varied according to season and juice characteristics surpassed international market requirements. HRS-812 is considered one of the best options due to lesser tree height, higher tree efficiency and good fruit quality, as well as HRS-954 which also presented a higher percentage of live trees.