ANATOMICAL DIFFERENCES OF AXILLARY BUD DEVELOPMENT IN BLIND NODES ANDNORMAL NODES IN PEACH

Actively growing shoots of peach [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] were col lected every 2 weeks throughout the 1989 growing season. The samples w ere sectioned longitudinally and transversely to observe axillary bud initiation, which occurred in all samples collected. Differentiation o f axillary bud meristems from early season samples (mostly normal node s) included apical and prophyll formation, with procambium connected t o the stem procambium. Little to no differentiation of such structures occurred in the late-season samples (mostly blind nodes). Other resul ts suggest that blind node formation is a consequence of a lack of bud differentiation rather than a failure of bud initiation.