BLOSSOM BIOLOGY OF POMEGRANATE CULTIVAR 'BHAGWA' UNDER SEMI-ARID TROPICS OF WESTERN INDIA

Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.), ‘the multi-seeded apple’ is an important fruit crop of arid and semi-arid regions of the world. Knowledge on blossom biology provides a pre-hand idea on the breeding mechanism. Pomegranate is a versatile crop with a high degree of amenability for flower regulation. The basic particulars per¬taining to various aspects of blossom biology, viz., flower bud initiation, commence¬ment, cessation and duration of flowering, period of anthesis, its peak time, etc. were studied in cultivar ‘Bhagwa’ under semi-arid conditions of Solapur during 2008-09. The cultivar ‘Bhagwa’ flowers thrice a year i.e., during ambe bahar (January-February), mrig bahar (June-July) and hasth bahar (September-October). The weight of the mature, ready-to-crack flower bud ranged from 2.0-2.6 g. The time taken for flower bud differentiation ranged from 18.4 to 22.0 days. The weight of hermaph¬rodite, intermediate and male flower was found to be 3.75, 2.61 and 1.48 g respectively. The hermaphrodite flowers were categorized into two groups viz., pin type and thrum type. The pistil length of hermaphrodite, intermediate and male flowers was measured to be 1.96, 1.45 and 0.25 cm respectively. The pollen viability with acetocarmine stain ranged from 85-94%. The fruit set under selfing was found to be in the range of 16.0 to 20.0%. The attributes of calyx, corolla, androecium and gynoecium were also studied in this investigation.