Growing behaviour of peach rootstocks in two old and new soils

The growth of 15 peach rootstocks planted in “new” and “old” soils was assessed. “Old” soils, collected in Caserta and Rome provinces, hosted two consecutive peach orchards lasting 19 and 22 years, respectively. The two “new” soils were obtained from non cultivated areas nearby the orchards. On both kinds of soils, the following analyses were carried out: physical and chemical characteristics, presence and number of nematodes (Pratylenchus vulnus, Meloidogyne spp., Criconemella xenoplax), presence and number of fluorescent Pseudomonas spp. After two years, the vegetative growth of the pot-cultivated rootstocks was checked by measuring the increase of trunk diameter, the height of the tree and the total shoot length. In addition, the root and the trunk dry weight of the trees grown in the different soils were determined. The presence of nematodes was sporadic in both soils. Fluorescent Pseudomonas spp. were present in both soils and their colony forming units per gram of soils, ranging from 2 to 5 cfu/g were not statistically different. Generally speaking, the “old” soil induced a significant reduced growth of the trunk, of the height of the tree and length of the shoot. Also the root and the trunk dry weights were significantly lower in the “old” soils.