Open Access188 Influence of Planting Date on Strawberry Growth and Development in the Low Desert
Author(s) -
Michael Maurer,
Kai Umeda
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
hortscience
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.518
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 2327-9834
pISSN - 0018-5345
DOI - 10.21273/hortsci.34.3.474e
Subject(s) - sowing , cultivar , yield (engineering) , fragaria , rosaceae , horticulture , agronomy , biology , agriculture , ecology , materials science , metallurgy
A field study was designed to determine the effect of planting date and cultivar on growth and yield of strawberries in the low desert. The study was conducted at the Univ.of Arizona, Citrus Agricultural Center, near Waddell. Treatments included two strawberry cultivars (Camarosa and Chandler) and three planting dates 20 Aug. and 8 and 22 Oct. 1997. There was no significant difference in fruit yield between cultivars. However, fruit number was significantly greater for `Chandler', and, therefore, fruit size was smaller than `Camarosa.' Yield was significantly higher for strawberries planted 20 Aug., with nearly four times the yield compared to the other planting dates. Results of this study suggest summer planting of strawberries in the low desert to produce economically viable yields.