- I J Froneman en C Welgemoed
- lnstituut vir Tropiese en Subtropiese Gewasse, Privaatsak X11208, Nelspruit 1200
- 1998
Die grootste enkele faktor wat die wereldwye uitbreiding van lietsjies beperk, is die gebrek aan geskikte aangepaste kultivars. In Suid-Afrika is die hele bedryf gesentreer om twee kultivars, naamlik Tai So (HLH Mauritius) en McLean’s Red (Madras-groep).
Summary:
- The global expansion of lychee cultivation is limited by the lack of suitable, well-adapted cultivars; in South Africa, only two cultivars — Tai So (HLH Mauritius) and McLean’s Red (Madras group) — are widely grown.
- Propagation methods include seed, grafting, budding, cuttings, and air layering, with the goal of making plant material available to growers more quickly.
- Seeds are used in the search for new cultivars; seedlings from Brewster and McLean’s Red grow rapidly and can be grafted within a year.
- Currently, imported material is propagated using rootstocks (Tai So), but the condition of scionwood from Madagascar was poor, with only a 27% success rate, whereas Israel achieved a better success rate of 72%.
- Nursery techniques, including monthly sampling of cuttings, fungicide treatment, and biweekly foliar supplements, are applied to improve rooting.
- Research is ongoing to identify the most effective propagation methods to multiply material in a shorter time, including micropropagation and multiple air layers (more than one per branch).
- Future focus will be to investigate whether factors such as size, number of leaves, and the angle of cuttings influence rooting success, and to move away from traditional methods toward more advanced techniques.
- In summary, the main initiatives and techniques discussed aim to improve and accelerate the propagation of lychee.