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The fertilization problems of cultivated red- and black currant varieties in Hungary
38-40.Views:119Small fruits have a modest share in the fruit production of Hungarys. Red currant was grown traditionally in home gardens 60-70 years ago. Commercial production was established only in the surroundings of some town. The black currant was unknown until after Wold War II. An important change occured in small fruit production in the 1950s. Socialist countries, which had cheaper labour power, made efforts to meet these demands. In this time we produced 25.000 t.
Presently the country produces 13-15.000 tons currant fruit yearly 60% from this is black currant, which has a better market. It is our own interest to make our currant production more profitable. The currant is the second most widely cultivated soft fruit. Our product is disposed mostly on EU markets.
There was no breeding activity in this field in Hungary earlier. Cultivars used were mostly of foreign origin (W. European; Boskoop Giant, Silvergieter, Wellington XXX, Russian; Altaiskaya Desertnaya, Neosupaiuschaiasya, N. European; Brikltorp, Ojebyn). Besides well-known advantageous this cultivars have also some defects mainly unfavourable—adaptation to climatic conditions, which caused fertilisation problems, reduced the fruit set and uneven growth with decreased yields (Dénes & Porpáczy, 1999). About 140 black currant cultivars were investigated during the last four decades in our variety trials and only four of them were introduced with satisfying yielding capacity (3.5-5.5 t/ha).
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Flower visiting activity of honeybees on fruit species blooming subsequently
12-16.Views:150In the small demonstration orchard of the College Faculty of Horticulture at Kecskemét the blooming time, the flower density and the honeybee activity was observed at a number of cultivars of 20 flower species during four consecutive years.
Fruit crop species were in flower during 3-4 months altogether. The blooming period of them was classified into five groups as early (almond, apricot, gooseberry), middle early (sweet cherry, red currant, currant-gooseberry, black currant, white currant, peach, plum, sour cherry), middle late (pear, strawberry, apple), late (black elder, quince, medlar, raspberry, blackberry-raspberry) and very late blooming period (blackberry). The blooming period of the members of the groups of early and medium early blooming often coincided partly and the same happened between the medium and the medium late as well as between fruits of late and very late flowering.
The flower density of some fruit species is extremely variable (currant-gooseberry, medlar), while at others it is fairly stable and evenly dense in consecutive years (sour cherry, sweet cherry, strawberry). At other fruit species it is moderately changeable. Some fruit species tended to attract more honeybees than others (plum, apple, quince, medlar) and some of them tended to attract much less (black elder, pear) but most species can be regarded as of medium attractivity.
On the flowers of some fruit species (pear, strawberry, quince) honeybees gathered pollen predominantly. At most fruit species however pollen and nectar gathering behaviour seemed to be gradually changing during the season. Namely most honeybees tended to gather pollen at the flowers of the early blooming fruit species, but on the other hand typical foraging behaviour gradually shifted to nectar gathering at the flowers of fruit species of moderate and late blooming periods.