Phenological Traits of Important Hazelnut Cultivars in Ordu, Turkey

Abstract

This project was carried out to determine the phenological characteristics of 'Tombul', 'Palaz', 'Kalinkara' and 'Cakildak'. These hazelnut cultivars were grown in Ordu in coast (altitude of 0-250 m), middle (altitude of 250-500 m) and high zones (altitude of 500-750 m) from 1999 to 2002. This study recorded the following information: in the coast zone, the appearance of female and male flowers, fruit cluster formation, ripening, and leaf bud burst were earlier than in the high zone. The earliest ripening times were associated with 'Tombul', 'Palaz', 'Kalinkara' and 'Cakildak' cvs., respectively. The 'Tombul' was generally homogamous, 'Palaz' and 'Cakildak' were generally protandrous, and 'Kalinkara' showed the greatest variation. The average flowering periods for male flowers varied from 81.67 days for 'Palaz' to 48.33 for 'Cakildak', and the average receptive periods varied from 61.67 days for 'Kalinkara' to 28.33 for 'Cakildak'. This period varied according to year and altitude, and decreased from the coast to the higher area. The vegetation period lasted from 162 days for 'Palaz' to 174 for 'Cakildak'. For these cultivars, the recommended pollinizers were: 'Tombul' and 'Palaz' for `Cakildak'; 'Palaz' and 'Kalinkara' for 'Tombul'; 'Tombul' and 'Kalinkara' for 'Palaz'; and 'Palaz' and 'Tombul' for 'Kalinkara'.