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Even if the positive hazelnut pruning effects have been demonstrated by experimental trials, in one of the main Italian hazelnut production areas, pruning is not usually applied or it is limited to the removal of only some old branches every 3-5 years. In order to give just a practical demonstration of the pruning usefulness to hazelnut growers, a simple pruning trial was devised. In a 15-year-old hazelnut orchard of 'Tonda Gentile delle Langhe' (TGL) cultivar, an intense spring pruning (in May) was applied to plants usually not pruned. These pruning treatments and control were applied to five randomized replications of each of the 15 plants. The quantity of green material (branches, twigs, etc.) was more than 20 kg/plant and the pruning was not repeated in the following four years. As expected, a lack of yield was observed in the year of pruning due to the heavy removal of branches and twigs bearing a lot of growing fruits. In the following years, starting from the first after pruning, the yield recovered, especially in the "one-year-olds". An increase in nut quality was obtained immediately starting from the year of pruning, even if not always in a significant way. These positive effects of pruning on yield and nut quality were recorded only for 3-4 years, and therefore this kind of pruning could be reapplied every 3-4 years. |
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