Commercial plantings have been established in warmer areas, predominantly in the north of the country. Significant exports of the fruit have been made to Japanese and American markets during the past two years. To achieve successful fruit set and development, pollen must therefore be transferred between flowers in the male and female phase of development. Hand pollination has been widely used in several countries to produce commercial yields of high quality fruit. In New Zealand cherimoya trees shed all their leaves and undergo a short period of dormancy in October.
New shoots begin to develop from subpetiolar buds two-three weeks later.
A few flowers develop directly from the bud, however most are borne on current seasons shoots which continue to grow until late autumn. Anthesis occurs over a period of approximately two months during January-March. In this study we investigate this result in more detail in order to determine the most effective time to hand pollinate cherimoya in New Zealand. Although the average annual rainfall is approximately 1700mm, dry periods in summer and autumn combined with shallow soils necessitate irrigation during these months. Mature trees generally receive about 20 litres of water per day via drip irrigation.