Botany

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Morphology and selection of high yielding cashew (Anacardium occidentale L.) Strains for Maputaland, South Africa
(2001) Vololoniana, Ramiakato; Ferreira, D.P.; de Wet, H.
The Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) and Ithala Development Finance Corporation Limited (ITHALA) are in the process of establishing a cashew industry in South Africa at Coastal Cashews, Maputaland. This study concentrated on the morphology and yield characteristics of most of the strains already planted at Coastal Cashew farm. One hundred and thirty different strains, originating from various countries such as Zambia and Brazil, have been studied. Morphological and yield characteristics were considered for suggestions about strains for inclusion in a propagation program. Most morphological characteristics such as apple size and colour, leaf surface area and others, varied between strains, reflecting the diverse origin of plant material. Similarly, most of the yield characteristics such as nut production, nut size and others, varied between strains and within strains between seasons. Based on the morphological (number of panicles per tree, number of perfect flowers per panicle, and others) and the yield characteristics (nut per panicle, nut size, and others), a model has been proposed where the number of panicles per tree and the number of perfect flowers per panicle are used to predict the yield of a tree (strain).