The Philippine Star, Sunday, March 12, 1995

BREAKTHOUGH

Breakthrough in lychee fruiting

At Dizon's orchard cooperator's experimental and demonstration farm in Tiaong, Quezon, several 6-yr. old marcotted lychees were cinctured (making spiral ring around the lateral branches) and pruning (cutting of flushes or shoots). They are expected to bear fruit this April.

     Dizon noted that 2-3 yr. old clone lychee with double or tipple rootstock bear flowers without cincturing or pruning.

     Another method of inducing lychee to flower is by water stress, but this technique is expensive during rainy season. It can be done by covering the whole base of the root system with plastic to make the soil dry up to wilting point during the month of October, November and December.

If after subjecting the 10-yr. old to cincturing and pruning for 2 successive fruiting season, and still it does not produce flowers, mostly likely the lychee tree is male. Even it is marcotted taken from male non-fruiting bearing tree, it will forever be male.      Topworking and cloning is the method used in transforming males into female fruit bearing trees.

 The trunk is cut 1-2 ft. above the ground and 4-6 shoots are allowed to grow in opposite directions. The new variety will bear commercial fruit within two years from topworking and cloning.

     Contrary to common belief that lychee trees can only be grown only in Florida, Taiwan and Thailand, Dizon found out that it can be grown anywhere in the Philippines. Dizon observed that even marcotted lychee tree outgrow rambutan, lanzones; are drought resistant not easily attacked by pest and disease.