The development of new clones with high production combined to other desirable secondary characters is fundamental for a sustainable and competitive rubber tree cultivation. The objective of this study was to evaluate, during a period of 13 years, the phenotypic expression of superior characters of 17 clones of rubber tree grown in the plateau region of São Paulo State, Brazil. The treatments were arranged in a randomized block design with three replicates and six plants per linear plot. The clone IAC 40 exhibed the highest yield (2.316 kg ha-1 year-1) followed by IAC 300 (1.921 kg), whereas the control clone RRIM 600 had 1.493 kg ha-1 year-1 over six years of tapping. The percentage of plants able for opening ranged from 40% for IAC 329 to 100% for IAC 327. Except for IAC 56, IAC 331 and IAN 3156, with 7.21 mm, 7.18 mm and 6.40 mm respectively, all other clones had lower thick virgin bark at opening compared to the control clone RRIM 600, which recorded 6.38 mm. Except IAN 3.156 all clones showed low incidence of panel dryness. The good performance of all clones, both from IAC and Amazone (IAN, Fx and RO) allow their recommendation for small scale cultivation, when they would be further tested in different environments of the São Paulo State, aiming recommendations in large scale.
Hevea brasiliensis; bark thickness; tapping; anthracnosis; rubber yield
