Limb Girdling Influences Rooting, Survival, Total Sugar, and Starch of Dormant Hardwood Peach Cuttings

Abstract

Nonterminal cuttings were taken just after leaf fall (November) from nongirdled shoots and from shoots girdled 7 weeks previously on `Flordaking', `Junegold', and `Harvester' peach trees [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch.]. Cuttings from nongirdled shoots rooted (85%) and survived (72%) better than did cuttings from girdled shoots on the same trees (64% rooting, 49% survival). Total sugar averaged across cultivars was 68 mg·g -1 dry weight in cuttings from nongirdled shoots and 82 mg·g -1 dry weight in cuttings from girdled shoots. Starch averaged 26 mg·g -1 dry weight and was independent of shoot girdling. `Flordaking' had the lowest starch concentration and the highest” percentage of cuttings that rooted and survived. Rooting and survival percentages differed by as much as 90% among trees within each cultivar.