A field experiment was carried out during two consecutive years to ascertain the influence of paclobutrazol and cycocel on growth, cropping and water relations in olives. The trial was undertaken at the Olive Development Centre, Kigus, Mandi, Himachal Pradesh. In this experiment eight treatments viz., PP333 at 2 and 4 g a.i. tree-1 applied once in November or December as soil drench and cycocel at 1000, 2000 and 3000 ppm applied as foliar spray each year, two weeks after flowering to the trees of olive cultivar Leccino, with three replications in a randomized block design. Growth retardants have a great potential on controlling the growth, water relations and improving cropping parameters in rain fed conditions. During the study, PP333 &nbsp;at 4 g a.i tree-1 when applied in November as soil drench decreased growth (15.69 cm), length of internodes (1.84 cm), leaf area (4.60 cm2), stomatal size (13.61 &micro;m), water potential (-15.69 bar), transpiration rate (0.160 m mol m-2 s-1), endogenous GA3 (9.61hg/g fresh weight), stomatal conductance (1.51 mol m-2s-1) and increased leaf thickness (0.62 cm), leaf chlorophyll content (3.05 mg/g fresh weight), photosynthesis (24.62 &micro; mol m-2 s-1), osmoprotectants that is. Proline (2717 &micro;g/g) and ABA (60.74 (hg/g fresh weight), flowering intensity (0.65 %) and fruit set (7.57%), and thus might be helpful in mitigating water stress under rain fed conditions.

Effect of growth retardants on growth, flowering and physiological characteristics of olive cultivar Leccino under rain-fed&nbsp;conditions of Himachal Pradesh, India

A field experiment was carried out during two subsequent years to study the drought tolerance potentials of the existing olive cultivars at Olive Development Centre, Kigus, Mandi, Himachal Pradesh. In this field trial, 33 uniform and healthy, 25-year-old olive trees of 11 olivcultivars viz., Canino, Cipressino, Coratina, Cornicobra, Frantoio, Gordal Sevilana, Hojiblanca, Leccino, Manzanilla, Moraiolo and Pendolino planted on contour system at 6 m apart were selected. The experiment was laid out in randomized block design with eleven treatments replicated three times. Olive cultivar Leccino showed lesser reduction in growth, upholds higher leaf water potential, higher photosynthetic activity, increased nutrient uptake and accumulated more osmoprotectants like proline, ABA and free amino acids, which enable it to perform better under rainfed conditions of Himachal Pradesh. On the other hand, cultivars Pendolino and Gordal Sevilana showed more water stress related symptoms of leaf yellowing, leaf rolling and shoot tip bending. It may be inferred that cultivar Leccino can tolerate drought stress conditions better than other cultivars

Effect of growth retardants on growth, flowering and physiological characteristics of olive cultivar Leccino under rain-fed conditions of Himachal Pradesh, India

Characterization of olive cultivars for drought tolerance potential under rainfed conditions of Himachal Pradesh