Growth-Development, Yield and Quality Characteristics of Aronia Varieties Grown in Pots

This study was carried out to determine the growth, development, yield and some quality characteristics of Nero and Viking Aronia varieties grown in open field and pot in Samsun ecological conditions. Three-year-old Aronia plants were planted in 80-liter pots containing a 1:1:1 (v/v) mixture (barnyard manure+soil+sand) and 5 plants were included in each replication. Number of shoots, flower buds and clusters, berry weight (g), yield (g/plant), firmness (N), number of fruits per cluster, must yield (ml/100g), TSSS (%) and pH values were measured in Aronia cultivars. In addition, monthly shoot growth rate (cm/month) was determined and phenological observations recorded. According to Viking and Nero Aronia varieties, the number of shoots (7.8 and 7.6 pieces), the number of flower buds (22.63 and 22.85 pieces), the number of clusters (45.06 and 44.80 pieces), the weight of berry (0.82 and 0.79 g), the fruit number in the bunch (21.45 and 21.53 pieces), berry firmness (4.90 and 5.35 N), amount of must (49.67 and 54.00 ml/100 g) and TSS (17.07 and 16.47) and pH values (3.65 and 3.52) were found to be close to each other. Bud burst (10 March), flowering (26 April), berry set (12 May) and harvest time (24 August) were also similar in cultivars. It was also revealed that while the shoot length was 97.47 cm and 95.47 cm on March 11, respectively, in Viking and Nero varieties, it reached 124.73 and 120.73 cm in August, five months later.