Tree Genetics and Molecular Breeding 2025, Vol.15, No.4, 154-160 http://genbreedpublisher.com/index.php/tgmb 156 4.2 Source-sink relationships and fruit load regulation Under the dwarf-dense cultivation model for high yield, the distribution of nutrients between leaves and fruits is extremely crucial. Studies have found that under optimized cultivation conditions, the sugar content in the fruit of bayberry is higher, and the activities of key glucose metabolism enzymes (such as sucrose phosphosynthase and acid invertase) are also stronger, which can make the fruit sweeter and larger (Wu et al., 2021; Sun et al., 2024). Meanwhile, some hormones, such as auxin, jasmonic acid and abscisic acid, also play a significant role in regulating fruit development and can help balance the nutrient distribution between leaves and fruits (Fu et al., 2025). 4.3 Impacts on flowering, fruit set, and fruit quality Dwarf-dense cultivation not only leads to higher yields but also improves the quality of fruits. For example, planting some ryegrass in the orchard can not only improve the soil and root environment, but also increase the sugar, vitamin C and flavonoids in the fruit, and reduce the sourness (Li et al., 2023a). During the fruit development process, hormonal changes and nutrient metabolism within plants can also affect flowering, fruit setting and the taste of the fruit (Figure 1) (Sun et al., 2024; Fu et al., 2025). Growing bayberries in greenhouses can further increase the single fruit weight, sugar content and sugar-acid ratio, making the fruits taste sweeter and better (Wu et al., 2021). Figure 1 Immunofluorescence localization of auxin in the (a) longitudinal and (b) transverse sections of flesh segments (Adopted from Fu et al., 2025) Image caption: The bayberry variety used for the immunofluorescence localization analysis was ‘Biqi’, and all scale bars were set to 200 μm. In (a), the dashed line indicates a longitudinal section of a single flesh segment, where the auxin fluorescence signals are enriched at the top and side walls of the flesh segment, forming a continuous linear distribution along the contour marked by the dashed line. In (b), the arrow indicates the central vascular bundle within the cross-section of the flesh segment, where the enrichment of auxin fluorescence signals is observed (Adopted from Fu et al., 2025)
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