02571naa a2200265 a 450000100080000000500110000800800410001910000180006024501490007826000090022752017760023665000140201265000150202665000180204165000260205965000240208570000210210970000150213070000180214570000180216370000180218170000190219970000190221877300680223711328402022-12-06       2022    bl uuuu     u00u1 u    #d1 aMARTIN, M. S.  aHand flower thinning strategies and their effect on production and fruit quality of 'Maxi Gala' apple in Southern Brazil.h[electronic resource]  c2022  aIn apple crop, thinning aims to increase fruit size and quality, besides providing constant production. Flower thinning is considered one of the most effective methods to decrease the competition between productive and vegetative organs in plants at the early stage of fruit development, improving the proportion of fruits in higher size categories. This study evaluated different hand flower thinning strategies and their effect on production and fruit quality of ?Maxi Gala? apple trees in Southern Brazil. The work was carried out in an experimental orchard located in São Joaquim/Santa Catarina State (28°16?30?S, 49°56?09?W, altitude 1,415 m). Three strategies of hand thinning at full bloom were tested: keep the king flower, keep the second flower and keep both the king and second flowers. In addition to the flower thinning, two more treatments were evaluated: hand thinning of fruits (12 mm) and chemical thinning (Maxcel®, 200 mL 100 L‑1, 5-8 mm) + hand thinning of fruits (12 mm). At harvest, the number of fruits per tree and the production per tree and per hectare were evaluated; the fruits were also classified in size classes and evaluated for maturity attributes. The thinning that kept both the king and second flowers provided a higher production than the one that kept only the king flower and a higher number of fruits than the chemical thinning (5-8 mm) + hand thinning (12 mm). On the other hand, this treatment produced fruits with lower fresh weight, as well as a decreased proportion of fruits classified as large (&gt161 g) and an increased proportion of fruits classified as very small (&lt101 g) compared to trees subjected to the thinning that kept only the second flower and to chemical thinning (5-8 mm) + hand thinning (12 mm).  acrop load  afruit size  ahand thinning  aMalus domestica Borkh  aproductive capacity1 aBRIGHENTI, A. F.1 aLUZ, A. R.1 aDANIEL, E. S.1 aSANDER, G. F.1 aMALOHLAVA, I.1 aFREITAS, F. R.1 aDENCHINSKY, M.  tActa Horticulturae, Leuven, Belgiumgn. 1346, p. 505-510, 2022.