Bioscience Methods 2026, Vol.17, No.1, 32-42 http://bioscipublisher.com/index.php/bm 35 determined based on the number of remaining branches, and it is divided into three groups: heavy pruning, medium pruning, and light pruning (Holz et al., 2025). For the heavy pruning group, each tree is left with about 6 main fruiting branches, with a total bud count of approximately 30; for the medium pruning group, it is slightly more relaxed, with 10 main branches and about 50 buds (Özkul et al., 2022; Barcia et al., 2023); for the light pruning group, each tree has more than 15 main branches, with about 80 bud points. There is a significant difference in the number of remaining branches among the three treatments. The experiment adopts a random block design, with 3 replicates for each treatment, and each replicate selects 5 consecutive trees (Santos et al., 2023). The pruning is carried out by the same group of technicians to avoid deviations caused by human differences. Apart from pruning, other field management such as water and fertilizer supply, pest and disease control, etc. are kept uniform to minimize the complexity and ambiguity of influencing factors. 3.3 Data collection indicators and statistical analysis methods As the next long season arrived, the recording work began. We counted the number of each type of emerging fruiting branches and nutrient branches on each plant, calculated the proportion to reflect which part was more dominant, and also observed how these branches were distributed within the tree crown (Anderson et al., 2021). Regarding yield, we checked how many fruits each plant produced, the total yield, and the average weight of each fruit (Mota et al., 2022). As for the quality of the fruits, it was not overlooked either: externally, we mainly checked if the size and shape were regular, and internally, we measured the sugar content, acidity, and vitamin C content (Balık et al., 2023). All these indicators were measured using conventional methods for fruit tree quality. After obtaining the data, we used one-way analysis of variance to make comparisons. Whether the differences between groups were significant was determined by the subsequent LSD method, and the statistical significance level was set at 0.05. 4 Effects of Different Winter Pruning Intensities on the Proportion of Resulting Branches 4.1 Effects of winter pruning intensity on the number and distribution of resulting branches The intensity of winter pruning significantly affects the number and spatial distribution of fruiting branches in kiwifruit (Angami et al., 2022; Patiyal et al., 2024). The heavy pruning treatment, which only retains a small number of fruiting mother branches, results in a significant reduction in the number of resulting branches per plant the following year, which is significantly less than that of the light pruning treatment. The resulting branches of the heavy pruning plants are mainly concentrated in the lower and middle parts of the main vine, which have better light conditions and form a uniform distribution with strong branches, and are less likely to have overlapping. The resulting branch number and distribution of the medium pruning treatment are between the two. The number of resulting branches is moderate, and they are distributed in all parts of the tree crown. The light pruning treatment retains the most bud sprouts, and the number of resulting branches per plant is the highest, but the distribution is uneven: a large number of resulting branches are concentrated in the upper outer part of the tree crown, while many weak resulting branches also grow in the inner and lower parts, resulting in messy foliage, local congestion, and shading of branches from each other, which is not conducive to the uniform growth of fruits (Tosto et al., 2023). It can be seen that as the pruning intensity changes from heavy to light, the number of resulting branches increases but the uniformity of distribution decreases. 4.2 Relationship between winter pruning intensity and proportion of nutritive branches and resulting branches Different winter pruning intensities directly affect the proportion of resulting branches and nutritive branches in the new shoots of the current year, reflecting the balance between reproductive growth and nutritional growth (Bevacqua et al., 2021). Heavy pruning treatments retain fewer bud numbers, and although the newly emerged shoots are mostly thick branches, many of them are non-resulting nutritive branches, resulting in a relatively low proportion of resulting branches. This presents a characteristic of "few but strong" branches. Light pruning treatments retain a large number of bud numbers, and the number of newly emerged shoots increases significantly. The proportion of branches bearing flower buds and resulting in fruits also increases. The proportion of resulting branches is significantly higher than that of heavy pruning, presenting a characteristic of "many but fine" branches. Moderate pruning treatments result in a proportion of resulting branches between the two extremes. The number
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