Managing irrigation efficiently is paramount given the uncertainty in the future availability of water and rising demand for this resource. Scheduled irrigation significantly influences vegetative growth through improving crop physiology and nutrient uptake and use efficiency. Influence of different irrigation treatments (100%, 75%, and 50% volume of Class A pan evapotranspiration) applied at four different phenological stages (flowering and fruit set (C1), fruit growth stage (C2), pre-harvest stage (C3), and throughout the growing season (C4)) through drip along with a control (rainfed) on leaf physiology, nutrient content, and uptake through gene expression was studied on Super Chief Sandidge variety raised on M9T337 (5 and 6 years old) grown at a spacing of 1.5 × 3 m (2222 plants/ha) under high density condition of Kashmir Himalayan range of India. A comparison of data reveals that drip irrigation at 100% Crop evapotranspiration (ETc) increased leaf area by 60% compared to rainfed conditions. Leaf area significantly increased in plants irrigated throughout the growing season (C4) and during flowering and fruit set stage (C1). Irrigation amount likely does not have any influence on leaf development after the fruit growth stage. Stomatal opening and their size greatly vary from no irrigation to optimum irrigation in these plants. High density apple trees exposed to optimum irrigation levels (100% and 75% ET) had significantly higher concentrations of nutrients (N, P, and K) in their leaf tissues. The concentration of Ca and Mg content in leaf tissues are greatly influenced by the optimum supply of water during the early growth stages of apple growth. The availability of water significantly influences nutrient transporter gene expression and thus nutrient uptake by regulating such transporter genes. It is therefore observed that proper irrigation during C1 and stage C2 stage are the critical growth stages of apple for optimum leaf physiological activity and proper nutrient uptake.

Understanding how nutrients accumulate and change throughout the developmental stages according to the BBCH scale can be a very effective technique for developing fertilization programmes for high-quality, marketable grape production. Accordingly, the macro- and micronutrient concentrations at different growth stages were analyzed for two commercial grape cultivars, viz., “Anab-e-Shahi” and “Perlette”, by using an extended BBCH scale. The results show nitrogen content was reduced during the sampling period (D1 to D6) from 1.76 percent to 1.09 percent. Potassium concentration in developing berries kept on increasing from 0.15%, at principal growth stage 7 with BBCH code 73 (D1), to 0.26% at principal growth stage 8 code 89 (D6). The lowest phosphorus content of 253.88 ppm and the highest of 338.43 ppm were found in growth stages D1 and D6, respectively. The berry Ca however showed an increase first and thereafter decreased to 225.18 ppm at harvest. Mg content also recorded a similar trend from stages D1 to D6 of the BBCH scale and decreased to 116.08 ppm at D6. B and Cu concentrations increased from D1 to D6, and Mn and Zn increased first and decreased thereafter until harvest. No specific trend was recorded in Fe concentration. The concentration of nutrients in berries at different developmental stages can be used as the standard reference for growing berries using proper fertilization.

This study investigated the performance of various exotic apple varieties grafted on M9T337 rootstock under high density orcharding system. Plant material was imported from a private nursey GRIBA Italy. The study was carried out under temperate conditions of J&K (India) at the experimental field of SKUAST-Kashmir. In the present investigation, the following varieties were studied: Super Chief Sandidge, Gala Red Lum, Fuji Zhen Aztec, and Golden Clone B. The physico-chemical characteristics based on lab investigation of fruits including physical characteristics (fruit weight, fruit length, fruit diameter, L/D ratio, fruit firmness, specific gravity, and no. of seeds) and chemical characteristics (TSS, total titratable acidity, TSS/acid ratio, ascorbic acid, total sugars, and juice content) were followed during the study. Sensory evaluation through a panel of judges was also carried out for various qualitative characteristics (colour, aroma, taste, and flavor). The results showed statistically significant differences among the different varieties. The fruit weight, flesh firmness, and specific gravity were within the range of 157.62-193.99 g, 7.16-8.85 Kg/cm2, and 1.7-1.37 respectively. Similarly, some of the chemical characteristics like TSS, titrable acidity, and total sugars ranged from 11.37-14.12 °Brix, 0.20-0.38 per cent, 9.25-11.37 per cent respectively. The overall results indicate that all the introduced apple varieties are characterized by different quality characteristics and hence can be recommended to further evaluation and cultivation.

Average number of flowers/cluster was found highest in ‘Fuji Zehn Aztec’ (5.92) and average number of fruits/cluster was recorded in ‘Golden Clone B’ (3.24). Fruit to leaf ratio was found maximum in ‘Golden Clone B’ (34.65) and lowest in ‘Super Chief Sandidge’ (25.28). Fruit set (%) and Fruit retention (%) was observed maximum in variety ‘Golden Clone B’ (85.09% and 48.49% respectively). Highest yield and yield efficiency was observed highest in ‘Golden Clone B’ (4.95 kg/tree and 1.42 kg/cm² respectively). As per the maturity ‘Gala Red Lum’ may be categorized as early, ‘Super Chief Sandidge’ as mid-season and ‘Fuji Zhen Aztec’ and ‘Golden Clone B’ found late. The overall results indicate that the introduced apple varieties are characterized with different biological and quality polymorphism. All of the studied varieties show positive characteristics and can be recommended for further evaluation and mass multiplication.

Fruit production is one of the major income-generating activities in the world. From pome fruits to stone fruits, the cultivation of fruit crops has been made possible due to the development of various techniques of propagation. Plum being one of the important stone fruits cultivated in both the temperate and subtropical regions is multiplied by a number Of propagation methods. Plums can be propagated by seeds, grafting and budding techniques, as well as by tissue culture methods. The main purpose of any propagation technique is the production of superior quality planting material, which acts as the backbone of the fruit-production industry. Micropropagation techniques in plum is one of the novel propagation techniques for the production of disease-free planting material, which can help to prevent the spread of disease in nurseries as well as in plum orchards. To meet the increasing demand of plum, it is important to produce good-quality planting material in large quantities, for which nursery management and the standardization of a propagation technique is a must. The method of propagation and nursery-management activities in turn decide the production and productivity of plum. More research is required on plum propagation methods to obtain quality plants that can be used as the parents for the purpose of grafting and budding. The focus should be on in vitro plum propagation methods for the purpose of reducing its juvenile period and breeding time.

The diversity of plums is expressed by their names together with prunes, bullaces, damson, date plums, green gauges, mirabilis, cherry plums and sloes. Genetic variability in plum species and cultivars is necessary in the breeding programs in order to produce the desired characteristics. Presently, the genetic resources of plums available worldwide can be used for future screening, particularly in diploid plums. For utilization in breeding programmes in respect to biotic and abiotic stress, compatibility with rootstocks, low chilling resistance and self-fruitful. There are some clones of plums that have an excellent degree of hypersensitivity resistance with great variation in fruit quality, namely, Hanita, Felsina and Fellenberg. Jojo crossed with Haganta gave PPV-resistant clones. On the other hand, rootstock breeding is also essential in terms of vigour, yield, precocity, fruit quality, wide adaptability to soil and climatic conditions. The plum transgenic cultivar Honeysweet shows the appearance of a viral coat protein (CP) gene that has the ability to check the replication of a virus through the inhibition of virus activity. Marker-assisted selection is a rapid technique for the pre-selection of multiple desired characters simultaneously than the conventional breeding programme, genetic constitutions shortly before that than is considered in the field. This technique can save the time-space continuum and focus on genes of interest for the development of elite cultivars. In plums, DNA-based markers (SSRs) are especially beneficial to distinguish plant species quickly and accurately.