This study aimed to examine the effects of garlic extract (Bioalho®) on bud break of 'Fuji Kiku' apple trees in comparison to the conventional use of hydrogen cyanamide (H2CN2) at the region of Guarapuava-PR, Brazil. Soon after winter pruning, in September 2005, the following treatments were sprayed on plants at dormant bud stage: 1) control (untreated); 2) 1% GE (garlic extract); 3) 5% GE; 4) 10% GE; 5) 2% MO (mineral oil); 6) 1% GE + 2% MO; 7) 5% GE + 2% MO; 8) 10% GE + 2% MO; 9) 0.4% H2CN2 + 4% MO. The treatments with garlic extract and mineral oil showed similar effects in comparison to the hydrogen cyanamide treatment, achieving up to 90% of bud sprouting at 50 DAT, while only 2% mineral oil and control, attained only 62.5 and 42.7%, respectively. The treatments with 5 or 10% garlic extract presented the lowest values for number of fruits, yield per plant and yield per area, not because the ineffectivenessof break dormancy, but probably due to the antecipation of the flowering which coincided to a very much rainy period at the beginning of the spring.
Malus domestica; sprouting; hydrogen cyanamide; fruitculture
