COMPARISON OF THE YIELD, LABOUR REQUIREMENT AND FRUIT QUALITY OF ‘CONFERENCE’ PEARS UNDER FIVE INTENSIVE TRAINING SYSTEMS IN SPAIN

‘Conference’ pears were grown in two different areas (Lleida and Girona) of Catalonia (NE Spain) where five intensive training systems were monitored for five years after planting. The objective of the study was to explore the possibilities of improving the precocity and yields of Conference pear trees. We used three Tatura trellis training systems with preformed trees (four branch, two branch and one branch Tatura, respectively) and two central axis training systems. Control trees were trained to a central axis using non-preformed trees. Planting density ranged from 2133 to 5333 trees/ha, with spacing between trees ranging from 0.5 to 1.25m and with 3.75m between rows. The Tatura and central axis systems produced higher yields than the control system. Higher cumulative yields were recorded for all Tatura training systems, with the highest being registered on the two branch Tatura (130 tons/ha) and the lowest on the control system (52 tons/ha). On the other hand, the Tatura training systems required more time input and implied higher planting and pruning costs. The two branch Tatura was the most expensive to plant (29966 €/ha), while the control system was the cheapest (7880 €/ha). Yields were lower in Girona than in Lleida due to the need to replant an orchard and to local soil characteristics. No significant differences were observed between the different systems with respect to fruit quality and size.