Investigation of vegetative growth, yield and fruit quality characteristics of 'Hafif Çukurgöbek' loquat cultivar grafted on different quince rootstocks

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‘Hafif Çukurgöbek’ loquat budded on three quince rootstock (BA-29, A, and C) were evaluated in 2018 and 2019 in Hatay, Turkey. Fruit ripening was the earliest in BA-29 rootstock in both years. The highest fruit weight was obtained from Quince-C rootstock and followed by BA-29 rootstock, and Quince-A rootstock. Quince-C rootstock yielded significantly higher values in terms of seed number, seed weight, and flesh/seed ratio. BA-29 and Quince-A rootstocks had similar values in terms of total soluble solids, while Quince-C rootstock had the lowest value. Differences between the rootstocks in terms of titratable total acidity and pH were not found to be statistically significant. Quince-C rootstock gave higher values in terms of annual shoot length, scion and rootstock diameter compared to Quince-A and BA-29 rootstocks. The differences between the rootstocks in terms of vegetative parameters were found to be statistically significant at 1% level. Our preliminary data indicate that dwarfing quince rootstocks can be used in intensive plantings of loquat. In this study, BA-29 and Quince C rootstock performed better than Quince-A. Considering yield and fruit quality based on total soluble solid, BA-29 rootstock seems the best choice.