FLORIDIAN LITCHI YIELD IS INCREASED BY 2,4,5-TP SPRAY

'Floridian' is the second most important cultivar of litchi (Litchi ch inensis Sonn.) in Israel. It appears to be either related to or identi cal with the meridian 'Brewster' and the Chinese 'Chen Zi'. Its produc tivity tends to be medium to poor. Like `Mauritius', the leading litch i cultivar in Israel, it undergoes massive fruitlet drop that can be r educed by spraying with 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxypropionic acid (2,4,5-TP ). Preliminary studies showed that 'Flordian' respond better to 2,4,5- TP treatment applied at an earlier stage of fruitlet development (Ig) than 'Mauritius' (2 g stage). A pronounced and significant yield incre ase of 40% or more was obtained in large-scale commercial trials. As a bonus, the percentage of desirable fruit with shrivelled seeds also i ncreased significantly, from 12-14% to 27-29%. A routine spraying of m ixed 'Flordian' and 'Mauritius' plots with 100 ppm 2,4,5-TP is recomme nded, when the early-flowering 'Mauritius' and the late-flowering 'Flo ridian' have fruitlets weighing about 2 and Ig, respectively. Spraying with 2,4,5-TP is expected to increase the yield of yet other litchi c ultivars. However, optimum conditions for each cultivar need to be det ermined.