Desenvolvimento de frutos de Longan (Dimocarpus longan lour) na região de Jaboticabal-SP

O presente estudo teve por objetivo avaliar o desenvolvimento de frutos de plantas de longan (Dimocarpus longan Lour) na região de Jaboticabal, estabelecendo-se, portanto, a curva de crescimento dos frutos. As avaliações realizadas foram semanais, consistindo em medições do diâmetro longitudinal e transversal dos frutos marcados, a partir do momento da formação da polpa. Quinzenalmente, realizaram-se avaliações de características físicas: massa de fruto (g), casca (g), polpa (g) semente (g), e químicas: acidez titulável (AT), sólidos solúveis (SS), ácido ascórbico (AA) e ratio (SS/AT). Com os resultados obtidos, pode-se concluir que o ciclo de frutificação da Longan na região é entre 120 e 130 dias após antese, período em que o fruto estaria apto para o consumo. A curva do desenvolvimento dos frutos segue um padrão sigmoidal simples. Com relação aos atributos físicos e químicos, constatou-se que a planta 6 apresentou os melhores resultados, podendo ser recomendada como planta-matriz.

Influência do tamanho da semente na emergência das plântulas de longan (Dimocarpos longan Lour)

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Avaliação de progênies de longan

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Ecology of Leptocoris Hahn (Hemiptera: Rhopalidae) Soapberry Bugs in Australia

Soapberry bugs are worldwide seed predators of plants in the family Sapindaceae. Australian sapinds are diverse and widespread, consisting of about 200 native trees and shrubs. This flora also includes two introduced environmental weeds, plus cultivated lychee (Litchi chinensis Sonn.), longan (Dimocarpus longan Lour.) and rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum L.). Accordingly, Australian soapberry bugs may be significant in ecology, conservation and agriculture. Here we provide the first account of their ecology. We find five species of Leptocoris Hahn in Australia, and list sapinds that do and do not serve as reproductive hosts. From museum and field records we map the continental distributions of the insects and primary hosts. Frequency of occupation varies among host species, and the number of hosts varies among the insects. In addition, differences in body size and beak length are related to host use. For example, the long-beaked Leptocoris tagalicus Burmeister is highly polyphagous in eastern rainforests, where it occurs on at least 10 native and non-native hosts. It aggregates on hosts with immature fruit and commences feeding before fruits dehisce. Most of its continental range, however, matches that of a single dryland tree, Atalaya hemiglauca F. Muell., which has comparatively unprotected seeds. The taxon includes a smaller and shorter-beaked form that is closely associated with Atalaya, and appears to be taxonomically distinct. The other widespread soapberry bug is the endemic Leptocoris mitellatus Bergroth. It too is short-beaked, and colonises hosts phenologically later than L. tagalicus, as seeds become more accessible in open capsules. Continentally its distribution is more southerly and corresponds mainly to that of Alectryon oleifolius Desf. Among all host species, the non-native environmental weeds Cardiospermum L. and Koelreuteria Laxm. are most consistently attacked, principally by L. tagalicus. These recent host shifts have biocontrol implications. In contrast, the sapinds planted as fruit crops appear to be less frequently used at present and mainly by the longer-beaked species.

Lychee propagation (Litchi chinensis Sonn.): A comparative study of rootstocks

The lychee (Litchi chinensis Sonnerat), of the family Sapindaceae, is a highly valued fruit throughout the world. It is native to southern China, but it is cultivated in many parts of the world. In Brazil, the cultivation of the lychee was initiated in the 1970s in the State of São Paulo and has been increasing in production even though the crop size still averages only 1.4 ha per producer. The low crop size is attributed to the high cost of seedlings and the amount of time required for the plant to bear fruit. These factors discourage planting in large areas. The purpose of this research is to study some aspects of what is vitally important for the production of lychee seedlings on a large scale, with low cost and good genetic quality. Tests were performed using rootstocks from seeds of lychee and longan (Euphoria longan Lam.). Scions for grafting were taken from plants of lychee 'Bengal' in the collection of fruit species from FCAV-UNESP, Campus of Jaboticabal, Brazil. The experiments were started in September 2007 and the grafting process was performed in each month of the year finishing in August 2008. During this period the influence of these criteria were evaluated: 1) time of the year; 2) species of rootstock; 3) percentage of grafting success; 4) stem height at grafting point; 5) stem diameter at grafting point. Therefore, through statistical analysis we obtained significant differences in relation to the rootstock used, the months of the year in which the grafting was performed and the interaction between rootstock and the month in which the grafting was performed.

The use of heat-sums to predict harvest dates following potassium chlorate (KClO3) application in longan.

The ability to initiate and manipulate flowering with KClO3 allows flowering of longan, to be triggered outside of the normal flowering season (July-September) in Australia. Fruit maturity following normal flowering will occur approximately six-eight months (180-220 days) from flowering, depending on variety. Out of season flowering will result in differing times to maturity due to different temperature regimes during the maturity period. Knowing how long fruit will take to mature from different KClO3 application dates is potentially a valuable tool for growers to use as it would allow them to time their applications with market opportunities, e.g. Chinese New Year, periods of low volumes or periods of high prices. A simple heat-sum calculation was shown to reliably quantify fruit maturity periods, 2902 and 3432 growing degree days for Kohala and Biew Kiew respectively. Growers can use heat-sum as a predictive tool to allow for efficient planning of harvesting, packaging and freight requirements.