The objective of this study was to document and analyze the effect of climate on the phenological development of ‘Hass’ avocado in two contrasting zones of the Andean tropics of Caldas, located at altitudes of 1,950m and 2,400m a.s.l., respectively. A completely randomized experimental design was carried out using a five to seven year-old ‘Hass’ tree as experimental unit and 15 replicates on each area. Observations were conducted on lateral sylleptic shoots and their corresponding apical buds located on the eastern and western sides of each tree. The destination of the apical bud of lateral shoots was quantified, floral phenology was documented, heat units were calculated from reproductive bud stage 1 to anthesis and to harvest and root growth was followed for each study area. Air temperature, soil temperature, precipitation and photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) values were recorded over time. Differences were found in the number of apical buds of lateral shoots with reproductive and vegetative destination, flowering phenology, heat units, root growth, PAR and precipitation. Differences were found among variables evaluated at the two contrasting altitudes. There is a clear need for further ecophysiological studies on this fruit tree in tropical areas in particular.

Colombia is the fourth largest avocado producer globally and the third largest in terms of harvested area, with a 6% share of the world area. The development and promotion of this production line represents an important source of growth in agriculture for Colombia, due to the generation of rural employment, equitable development across the different regions of the country, and due to the diversity of thermal floors and the different varieties planted. Imports of this product have decreased by 96% in the last four years from 3128 tons in 2014 to 133 tons in 2017. In recent years, the projects developed in the Colombian avocado sector have been aimed at the foreign market due to the profitability and demand of the Hass variety of this fruit. In addition, there is a state effort to implement plans for regions free of quarantine pests that allow access to foreign markets. This constitutes a strategic proposal made up of a coherent set of objectives, strategies and programmes which, based on a vision of the future, seek the initial goal of doubling the area of production. That move would ensure the technological and innovative conditions for sustainable and quality production, as well as achieve full links in international markets. This review aimed to know the main developments of avocado production in Colombia, its challenges and opportunities for the next decade.

Colombia is the fourth largest producer of plantain in the world, with a harvest of 3,539,252 t. Various biotic and abiotic factors affect yields, including phytoparasitic nematodes that are a major constraint in this crop. For this reason, strategies are being sought to improve the performance of this plant with this cosmopolitan pest. This research evaluated the effect of two hormonal regulators on the growth and development of the Dominico plantain. The experiment design had treatments that were divided plots, where the main plot corresponded to the type of product, and the sub-plot corresponded to the concentrations of paclobutrazol and mepiquat chloride in the different doses: 0, 250 and 500 mg L-1. The experiment unit consisted of ten plants with four replicates. The evaluated variables were plant height, diameter of the pseudostem, number of functional leaves, length and diameter of the roots, number of nematodes and variables for production quality. The two growth regulators reduced the plant height before emergence of the flower; paclobutrazol reduced the height by up to 40%, while mepiquat chloride reduced the height by up to 6.7%. There were no statistical differences in the production per plant, where the production with paclobutrazol was 14 kg/plant and, with mepiquat chloride, was 15 kg/plant. The control was 14.5 kg/plant. The use of growth regulators did not significantly restrict the damage caused by nematodes; however, paclobutrazol performed better as a growth regulator in the Dominico Hartón plants.