Production aspects of the guava cultivar paluma under different pruning and thinning intensities

Brazil is considered the world's largest producer of red guavas. This study aimed to evaluate the dynamics of the productive aspects of the guava cv. Paluma under the influence of different pruning and thinning intensities in two growing seasons in the region of Currais, Piauí, Brazil. The research was carried out in a commercial orchard at the Rancho Vale das Serras Farm, municipality of Currais, Piauí. The experiment was arranged in a randomized block design, in a factorial arrangement (3x3) composed of three pruning intensities (short, medium, and long) and three thinning intensities (0%, 10%, and 20%), during two growing seasons. The variables analyzed were plant height, canopy diameter, stem diameter, number of emerged shoots, number of vegetative branches, number of productive branches, number of open leaves, number of total fruits, longitudinal fruit diameter, transverse fruit diameter, chlorophyll a, b, and total, mean fruit weight, production, and yield. As for canopy diameter in the first season, the plants that underwent long and medium pruning showed greater vegetative growth due to the non-abrupt decrease in the CN ratio and because there was a greater amount of leaf area, resulting in greater growth. For the number of fruits, the results obtained showed that there was a smaller physiological drop in the subsequent medium and short pruning due to the smaller amount of plant tissues, turning the plant's energy towards fructification instead of growth. There was a significant effect of the pruning and thinning interaction on the mean fruit weight, production, and yield.