FOUR YEARS OF RDI DURING STAGE-II VERSUS STAGE-III IN PEACHES FOR PROCESSING: YIELD AND QUALITY

In the Mediterranean area, peach irrigation reduction can be adopted and applied by growers during pit hardening and sometimes it is imposed at the end of fruit growing season for quality purposes and due to shortage of irrigation water.
The field experiment was done during four years (2006-2009) on ‘Andross’ peach trees in a shallow soil.
Trees were unthinned and mechanically harvested.
Irrigation treatments were: full irrigation (FI) throughout the season according to water balance, 60% restriction during stage-II (IR2) and 24% restriction during stage-III (IR3). Soil water content was recorded and the physiological response of the trees was monitored.
Seasonal water savings were 16% for IR2 and 13% for IR3. Irrigation restriction had a different response depending on fruit growth stage.
After four years, RDI during stage-II decreased trunk growth, yield and fruit size, while a reduction of water during stage-III decreased trunk growth, yield and final fruit size, and increased quality parameters like soluble solids concentration and flesh firmness compared to fully irrigated trees.
Potential benefits and disadvantages of both strategies are discussed.

VI International Symposium on Irrigation of Horticultural Crops

X. Domingo, A. Arbonés, J. Rufat, M. Pascual, J.M. Villar

Prunus persica, drip irrigation, soil moisture, leaf water relations

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2011.889.24