Effects of Canopy Orientation on Fruit Quality of Seven Loquat Cultivars

The effect of canopy orientation (North, East, South, and West) was determined on fruit quality of some local and foreign loquat cultivars grown at Dortyol (Hatay), in the eastern Mediterranean Region of Turkey. Seven loquat cultivars were evaluated: 'Hafif Cukurgobek' (HCG), 'Golden Nugget' (GN), 'Sayda', 'Lapta-B2', 'Baduna-5', 'Ottowianni' and 'Sampiyon'. One-year-old plants grafted on seedling rootstocks were planted at 6x6 m in 1997, kept in south-north oriented rows. Fruit characteristics and annual shoot growth were evaluated. To evaluate fruit quality, 120 fruits (30 fruits from each side of the canopy) from each cultivar were collected and fruit weight (g), fruit size (mm), seed weight (g), seed number, flesh/seed ratio (%), total soluble solid (TSS) (%), titratable acidity (%) and pH were determined. There were significant differences among the cultivars for all traits tested. Fruit length, seed number, seed weight, flesh/seed ratio, TSS, and titratable acidity were significantly affected by canopy orientation.