Improved peach rootstocks and nursery management practices for subtropical climates

The main goal of this work was to screen and evaluate new rootstock seed sources and generate information related to seedling management to increase the efficiency of the plant propagation systems in the subtropics of central Mexico. Results provide information that could increase seedling quality and improve the efficiency of the current propagation process through: (a) the use of new rootstock selections, which required only 30-40 days in stratification and germinate more uniformly than commercial seed lots; (b) establishing the nurseries at lower elevations (1300 m); (c) direct seeding in the pots; (d) reducing the traditional pot size (8-121) to 51. These alternatives will save time, reduce the cost/plant and reduce the length of the propagation process, as seeds from new selections could be stratified immediately after harvest at the end of June, transplanted to 5 1 pots in August, budded 100-120 days later, and delivered to the orchard 2-3 months after budding (8-12 months earlier than in temperate regions). (C) 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.