EVALUATION OF SOME SWEET CHERRY CULTIVARS GRAFTED ON 'GISELA 6' ROOTSTOCK

The results regarding the evaluation of the trunk cross-sectional area of the scion, the rootstock and the grafting point and the calculation of the morphological index of thickening of the grafting zone in 5 sweet cherry cultivars ('Early Lory', 'Early Bigi', 'Grace Star', 'Regina' and 'Kordia'), grafted on 'Gisela 6' rootstock, are presented in this paper. The research was carried out in a commercial orchard located in Orodel commune, Dolj County, South-West part of Romania. The orchard was established in 2013, with a planting distance of 4 x 1.8 m. Based on the results obtained, the morphological index of thickening of the grafting area fluctuated significantly depending on the cultivar, reaching the highest value in 'Regina' cv. (0.012), the lowest being recorded in 'Kordia' and 'Early Lory' cv. (0.008). The largest differences between the rootstock and the grafting point were recorded in 'Grace Star' cv. (approx. 147 cm2), and the largest differences between the grafting point and the scion were recorded in 'Early Lory' and 'Kordia' cv. (approx. 32 cm2).