Qualification of the use of plant yield-enhancing products with photosynthetic and growth parameters

Abstract

In our experiment, we investigated the effect of some of the most commonly used plant conditioners and yield enhancers in production of nursery-gardens and reference plantations, which are based on photosynthetic and growth parameters of saplings and productive stocks. The one-year old apple sapling was UEB 3177/1 variety, commertially called Sirius. In addition to the growth parameters (such as shoot length and stem diameter), the total chlorophyll and carotenoid contents, which determine photosynthetic activity, were also examined in both nursery-gardens and reference plantations. The individual and combined application of yield-enhancing and conditioning agents were involved in a total of six treatments.

The application of iron and flavonoid containing preparation alone or in combination resulted a significant difference in total chlorophyll content compared to the control stock. In the case of the studied growth parameters, the combination of the flavonoid and humic acid containing preparations and the sole use of flavonoid agent proved to be the most effective in the longitudinal growth of the sapling. In the terms of trunk size, the combination of the same formulation proved to be the best treatment compared to the control stock. Our results may have been influenced by weather conditions, they can be considered as preliminary results, and our studies should be repeated in the next growing season to draw valid conclusions.