Abstract
The study of ovule senescence in the ovaries of four sweet cherry cultivars (‘Karina᾿, ‘Kordia᾿, ‘Regina᾿ and ‘Summit᾿) in the environmental conditions of West Serbia was carried out. Monitoring of ovaries was performed using the fluorescence microscopy method, on emasculated and pollinated flowers (cross-pollination variant), non-emasculated open-pollinated flowers (open pollination variant), and emasculated unpollinated flowers (unpollinated variant). In cross- and open pollination variants, the rate of unusual pollen tube growth in the ovary, fertilization percentage and fruit set were determined. The tendency in the appearance of fluorescence, as an indicator of ovule senescence, showed strong genotypic dependence ‒ it was the most and the least pronounced in the ovaries of ‘Kordia’ and ‘Regina’, respectively, in all the flower categories. Investigation of unusual pollen tube growth, fertilization percentage and fruit set, considered from the aspect of ovule senescence and cultivars’ behaviour as female (pollinated), pointed to their specific relations and complex dependence on the air temperature before and during the flowering. Flower emasculation and pollination also influenced ovule senescence, and this impact was unequal by genotypes, i.e. those having better ovule vitality in general, had also better ovule vitality in the conditions of emasculation, and pollination absence. The results imply different adaptation of cultivars to higher temperatures before and during the flowering, pointing to the further investigation related to the good adaptability of genotypes to air temperatures in reproductive sense, which is a basic indicator of good adaptability in general.
Highlights
IntroductionSpecific characteristics of the reproductive process in sweet cherries are related to some limited factors such as gametophytic self-incompatibility, flowering time and (in)sufficient flowering time overlap among compatible cultivars, fast drying of papillae on the stigma, i.e. short stigma receptivity, loss of ovule vitality during the flowering phenophase, the occurrence of chaotic growth of pollen tubes in the ovary, as well as the features of post-fertilization process
Sweet cherry, Prunus avium L., is one of the economically most important members of the Rosaceae family, which is mainly grown for its fruits, suitable for fresh consumption, as well as for different kind of processing.Specific characteristics of the reproductive process in sweet cherries are related to some limited factors such as gametophytic self-incompatibility, flowering time andsufficient flowering time overlap among compatible cultivars, fast drying of papillae on the stigma, i.e. short stigma receptivity, loss of ovule vitality during the flowering phenophase, the occurrence of chaotic growth of pollen tubes in the ovary, as well as the features of post-fertilization process
Flower emasculation and pollination influenced ovule senescence, and this impact was unequal by genotypes, i.e. those having better ovule vitality in general, had better ovule vitality in the conditions of emasculation, and pollination absence
Summary
Specific characteristics of the reproductive process in sweet cherries are related to some limited factors such as gametophytic self-incompatibility, flowering time and (in)sufficient flowering time overlap among compatible cultivars, fast drying of papillae on the stigma, i.e. short stigma receptivity, loss of ovule vitality during the flowering phenophase, the occurrence of chaotic growth of pollen tubes in the ovary, as well as the features of post-fertilization process. All of these factors, individually and collectively, can affect the fertilization success, and fruit set as its endpoint. Genotype specificities and variability in terms of ovule function have been observed in plum (Cerović et al, 2000), almond (Egea & Burgos, 2000), apricot (Alburquerque et al, 2002), and Japanese plum (Ruiz et al, 2010)
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