© 1989 Heron Publishing—Victoria, Canada
Carbohydrate requirements of peach fruit growth and respiration
T. M. DeJong (1) and E. F. Walton (2)
1. Department of Pomology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA / 2. MAFTech, Rua Kura Agricultural Centre, Private Bag, Hamilton, New Zealand / Received February 24, 1989
Summary
Data on the seasonal patterns of fruit growth and dark respiration of two peach (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch) cultivars were combined with temperature data to calculate the carbohydrate requirements of an “average” peach
fruit from bloom to harvest. The two peach cultivars used were June Lady (an early maturing (mid-June) cultivar) and O’Henry
(a late maturing (early-August) cultivar). At harvest, the mean dry weight of the June Lady fruit was 17.8 g (139.7 g fresh
weight) and of O’Henry fruits was 30.9 g (213.9 g fresh weight), and the times from full bloom to harvest were 107 and 154
days, respectively. The total calculated fruit respiration requirements were 132 and 300 mmol CO2 fruit–1 season–1 for June Lady and O’Henry fruits, respectively. Total calculated carbohydrate requirements for fruit growth and respiration
are 23.9 and 43.8 g CH2O fruit–1 season–1 for June Lady and O’Henry fruits, respectively. Fruit respiration accounted for 16.3% of the total carbohydrate requirements
of June Lady fruits and 0.5% of the total carbohydrate requirements of O’Henry fruits.
