Pruning maqui (Aristotelia chilensis (Molina) Stuntz) to optimize fruit production

- Spring- vs. summer heading produces higher fruit yield in next seasons.
- Reproductive shoots grow on young branches and vegetative on elder ones.
- Growth habit differs among different genotypes of maqui.
- Plants must be renewed constantly and apical sprouts headed in vigorous plants.

Maqui (Aristotelia chilensis (Molina) Stuntz) is a wild tree native to Chile with one of the highest levels of antioxidant activities known. The increasing demand for its fruit is all coming from wild collection. The ongoing domestication process is seeking for better fruit quality and sustainability of the production. The present research studies the response of cultivated maqui to different pruning treatments: spring heading, summer heading and renewal cuts. Spring pruning favored the appearance of vegetative and reproductive shoots. This treatment also improved the fruit yield of the following season compared with summer pruning. Vegetative shoots sprout mainly on two year old branches, while reproductive shoots appear also from recently grown plant sections. To achieve high fruit yields, maqui should be pruned in spring and branches renewed constantly to maintain a small plant size.

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