Flowers and Fruits Abortion in Fruit Trees ... Causes and Solutions: A review

Abstract

The history of planting fruit trees dates back to the presence of mankind on Earth. The people’s interest in cultivating it has increased with the progress of their civilization, as the fruit has become important in human food and his environment. The fruit-growing areas of both types, evergreen and deciduous, spread from north to south of Iraq. Palm cultivation is concentrated in the southern provinces, while palm, citrus, olive, pomegranate and others are concentrated in the central provinces. In the northern regions, the cultivation of apples, grapes, olives, stone kernels and Nut fruits is widespread. The production of fruit trees in many countries of the world plays a major “economic” role in their renaissance because the production of these trees has a direct relationship to increasing national income. The production of these trees requires the employment of qualified technical labor, the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, modern irrigation systems, tree breeding and pruning, As well as the production of seedlings in nurseries. It has been observed that fruit trees are directly related to the food industries, such as preserving fruits by freezing or drying, and the manufacture of jams and juice, and what these industries need of high technologies. Moreover, the fruits of fruit trees, whether through fresh consumption or processing, have a high nutritional value due to the sugars, oils, fats, protein, mineral salts, vitamins and others. The abortion of flowers and newly set fruits in fruit trees varies according to different species, varieties, environmental conditions and horticultural service operations. Abortion may be desirable when the number of flowers and fruits set on the tree is many, and this is called (natural thinning). While the abortion is harmful if the number of flowers and fruits is few on the tree, which results in a lack of yield later.