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**Chapter 4** 

© 2012 Rosati et al., licensee InTech. This is an open access chapter distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

© 2012 Rosati et al., licensee InTech. This is a paper distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

**Floral Biology: Implications for Fruit** 

Floral biology has important practical implications, in addition to its scientific relevance, given that flower characteristics and bloom affect fruit characteristics and yield. Yield derives from fruit quality (e.g. weight) and quantity (i.e. number), which, in turns, depend on flower quantity and quality: flowers must be suitable to become fruits, and then must be pollinated and fertilized, and must set fruits, which must then grow. Not all flowers can do all of this: some flowers, for instance, have aborted ovaries which are partially developed or absent at bloom, depending on when the abortion occurred. Even when still present, these aborted ovaries are not capable of becoming fruits. Normal pistils, may not be pollinated or fertilized, but also fertilized ovaries may drop after some growth, resulting in fruit drop. From 100 flowers, in olive, all the above phenomena result in one to few fruits (Hartmann, 1950). Because of this low fruit set, it is often believed that cultural practices aimed at improving pollination, increasing fruit set or reducing ovary abortion or fruit drop, may

In the following paragraphs we will analyze in detail some of these passages (i.e. ovary abortion and fruit set) allowing fruit formation from the flower. We will conclude that, in olive, yield is affected mostly by the nutritional status of the tree and the environmental conditions affecting it, which determine the potential yield. To achieve this potential yield, the plant uses a series of compensating mechanisms which make the yield rather independent of flowering or any single subsequent passage (i.e. ovary abortion, fruit set, drop and size).

Firstly, however, we will begin by describing how fruit characteristics, particularly fruit size, are mostly determined by the ovary characteristics at bloom. In the following paragraphs we will see how these ovary characteristics affect ovary abortion and fruit set. Finally we will discuss the apparent redundant flowering in olive, which produces many more flowers than

**Characteristics and Yield** 

Adolfo Rosati, Silvia Caporali and Andrea Paoletti

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/51727

lead to increased olive yields.

necessary for the yield it can sustain.

**1. Introduction** 

