A COMPARISON OF FIRST-CROPPING AND 2ND-CROPPING YEARS OF NOVA-SCOTIA LOWBUSH BLUEBERRIES (VACCINIUM-ANGUSTIFOLIUM) AIT

Traditional lowbush blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium Ait.) productio n is based on a biennial management system with vegetative growth occu rring the first year and fruit development and harvest in the second. An alternative to this management system is the 3-yr system (second-cr opping) which is characterized by 2 cropping years/cycle. This study w as initiated to quantify differences in vegetative and reproductive de velopment between first and second cropping years of the lowbush blueb erry and to determine why there are lower second crop yields. Second c rops averaged 70% of first crop yields. Second crop plants had longer stems and higher branch numbers than first crop plants. Although both cropping years produced equal numbers of flower buds/stem, second crop s had fewer blossoms/bud, blossoms/stem, set fruit, and berries/stem, resulting in lower fresh and dry weights of fruit/stem in second crop fields. Slower growth rate, fewer blossoms/bud, smaller leaf area/stem , and lower productivity of the second cropping year suggest that seco nd crop stems have fewer resources available to achieve the same produ ction level as first crop stems.