Vegetative and reproductive behavior of mombin clones grown on the Chapada do Apodi, Ceará, Brazil

Abstract

The mombin-tree orchard was planted in February 2000 on the Chapada do Apodi in Limoeiro do Norte, Ceará, with the aim of evaluating the effects of different combinations of rootstock and grafts on the vegetative growth, the number of productive plants and the fruit yield of mombin clones. The trial was set up in a randomized block design, a factorial of 5x2, with four replications and four plants per plot. Scions (crowns) were obtained from adult productive plants in Capuan, Caucaia, Ceará; in Curimatã, Pacajus, Ceará; in Gereau and Ladeira Grande, Maranguape, Ceará and in Lagoa Redonda, Fortaleza,Ceará and the rootstock taken from ungrafted mombin and hog-plum. The scion clones from Gereau, grafted onto hog plum, and from Round Pond onto mombin, had the greatest size (570 cm) and average annual rates of growth, while those from Ladeira Grande had the smallest size in all the evaluations, reaching an eventual height of 362 cm. The larger clones also had the greatest stem girth. The Capuan, Curimatã and Gereau clones were the most tardy, with the first plants entering the reproductive phase only at 62 months. The scion clone, Lagoa Redonda was the most productive when combined with either hog-plum or mombin. Neither the rootstock nor grafting altered the growth pattern of the clones, resulting in vigorous plants with no signs of incompatibility. The hog-plum rootstock increased precocity, number of fruits per bunch and production of mombin scion clones. The Lagoa Redonda scion was the most productive, especially when grafted onto hog plum.