Supplementary pollination in the production of custard apple (Annona sp.) – the effect of pollen source

Abstract

SummaryLow natural pollination rates produce few and poorly formed fruits in commercial orchards of the custard apple (Annona squamosa A. cherimola) cultivar ‘Hillary White’ on the Atherton Tablelands, North Queensland, Australia. To overcome this limitation, conventional practice is to hand-pollinate with pollen from either cv. ‘Hillary White’ or cv. ‘African Pride’. Supplementary pollination, using either pollen type, significantly increased overall fruit production and fruit quality above natural levels. However, pollen sourced from cv. ‘African Pride’ trees produced significantly larger and more symmetrical fruits than pollen from cv. ‘Hillary White’. Increased quality was not at the expense of quantity. There was no difference in mean fruit yield between flowers treated with pollen from either variety. These results indicate that using cv. ‘African Pride’ pollen should result in greater economic returns for growers through the production of a higher proportion of ‘best’ quality fruits.