BEHAVIOUR of "CANINO" APRICOT CULTIVAR GROWN IN THREE DIFFERENT SOILS

The response of “Canino” apricot trees to different soils were studied in three different regions, in El-Menoufia Governorate (as a sand and clay soil) & Alexandria Governorate (as a calcareous soil) during the two successive seasons of 2010 & 2011. Evaluation included vegetative growth, flowering, fruit set, tree productivity and fruit characteristics. Chilling units as well as growing –degree hours were also estimated through the two studied seasons. Results indicated that the vegetative growth was the best in clay soil for shoot length, leaf area and leaf chlorophyll content. Concerning periods of flowering, fruit set and harvesting dates there were variations among the three types of soils. Sand soil was the earliest followed by clay and calcareous soils. Percentages of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium were positively affected by soil type. Also, Fe, Mn and Zn were affected by soil type. “Canino” apricot trees produced earlier fruit yield with the better fruit quality in sandy soil, whereas clay soil type gave the greatest yield followed by sand and calcareous soils.