Flower regulation in pomegranate for higher yield, improved quality and enhanced management

Abstract

Introduction – Flower regulation is a useful approach in pomegranate to manipulate the natural flowering and fruiting in such a way that it produces higher yield with quality fruits in desired season with sustainable use of farm resources. Flower transition is a most important phenomenon in pomegranate flowering process. The differentiation of vegetative primordial to reproductive primordial determines flowering intensity and production efficiency. Pomegranate bears male, intermediate and hermaphrodite flowers on both new and old growth in one to three waves. Research issues – The pomegranate plant continues to bear flowers irregularly once, twice or thrice in a year, depending upon germplasm, agro-climatic conditions and management practices. It produces a low yield of inferior quality with non-synchronized maturity. To avoid this, flower regulation is practiced to encourage prolific harvest at specific time depending upon rainfall/irrigation facilities, pests and diseases incidence and market demand. Investigated research areas – Moisture stress, plant growth regulators, nutrient and canopy management (training, pruning and thinning) are major horticultural interventions which influence flowering. Although, many studies have been conducted in different countries to induce profuse flowering with improved sex ratio, fruit set, retention and ultimately high quality fruiting in desired season. The present review summarizes to advance induced bisexual flowers into quality fruits through horticultural interventions – deblossoming, thinning, use of plant growth regulators, micronutrients, fruit bagging, plant cover, mulching, antitranspirants, and enhanced management of physiological disorders, insect-pests and diseases and farm resources.