Annex 4 - Magnitude of losses relating to preharvest factors for starfruit in Malaysia, 1988

OPERATIONS	INSIGNIFICANT		SIGNIFICANT		VERY SIGNIFICANT
	Qlty	Qnty	Qlty	Qnty	Qlty	Qnty
1. Land preparation	nd	nd
2. Lining & holing	nd	nd
3. Planting material			< 3%	< 3%a
4. Planting	x	x
5. Fertilizer application					x	xb
6. Irrigation			x	20%c
7. Pest & disease control					up to 100%d	up to 100%
8. Weed control			x	xe
9. Pollination			x	xf
10. Pruning & training			x	xg
11. Thinning & bagging			x	xh
12. Harvesting & infield handling	x	x

Qlty = Quality; Qnty = Quantity; nd = not determined

a - There is no quality control for planting material; therefore, cultivars other than B10 may be included, leading to variation in fruit size, quality and yield. Certified planting material should be used so that fruit quality is maintained.

b - Starfruit responds very well to fertilizer application. An optimal fertilizer program enhances yield levels. Inadequate fertilization leads to a large decrease in productivity.

c - Loss estimated for one dry period a year affecting a season of flowering and fruiting (5 season/year). Starfruit is sensitive to waterstress. Periods of water shortage can result in reduced flowering and fruiting. Irrigation can overcome this problem.

d - Fruit flies can cause severe damage (up to 100%) to the fruits. Bagging is essential to produce high quality, insect-free fruit. Unbagged fruits are damaged by insects and are of inferior quality. Bagging ensures high quality fruits. However, bagging is extremely labor intensive and may limit the area of cultivation of the crop.

e - Weeds compete with the crop for nutrients. Circle or clean weeding is necessary to control weeds.

f - Cross pollination is necessary to ensure fruit set and quality for cultivar B10. Honey bees are efficient pollinators and are recommended at the rate of one hive per acre.

g - Starfruit has to be regularly pruned and trained to maintain a tree height and shape that facilitate bagging and fruit selection.

h - Thinning is carried out to select one fruit per florescence to increase individual fruit size and quality.

Source: Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Inst. 1988, pp. 35-36.