Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-mlc7c Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T12:33:04.426Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Water stress and crop load effects on yield and fruit quality of Elegant Lady peach [Prunus persica (L.) Batch]

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 December 2006

Ahmed Mahhou ,
Theodore M. DeJong ,
Ken S. Shackel  and
Tiesen Cao
Ahmed Mahhou
Affiliation:
Department of Horticulture, IAV Hassan II, BP 6202, Rabat, Morocco
Theodore M. DeJong
Affiliation:
Department of Pomology, Univ. Calif., Davis, CA 95616, USA
Ken S. Shackel
Affiliation:
Department of Pomology, Univ. Calif., Davis, CA 95616, USA
Tiesen Cao
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science, Univ. Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2P5, Canada
Get access

Abstract

Introduction. Fruit production is faced with water shortage, especially in areas with a Mediterranean climate characterized by a very long, dry and hot summer. Thus, the growers under such conditions must manage irrigation carefully by finding new strategies, including water stress management. Materials and methods. Effects of water stress (WS) and crop load (CL) on the carbon assimilation rate, fruit growth, crop yield and fruit quality (size and soluble solids content) were evaluated in a 7-year-old ‘Elegant Lady’ peach orchard (Winters, California, USA). The experimental design consisted of a completely randomized block factorial design with 2 × 3 factors: irrigation with two levels (control and WS trees) and crop load with three levels (light, commercial and heavy). Results and discussion. Both CL and WS affected fruit growth during the last stages but not early on. Crop load did not affect trunk water potential (TrWP) which, however, was significantly reduced by WS throughout the day and the season. The stomatal conductance (gs), transpiration rate (E) and CO2 assimilation rate (A) were not affected by CL, but they were reduced by WS. There were poor correlations between TrWP and either gs or A in control trees, indicating relatively poor coordination between leaf functions in peach trees under optimal conditions. Both WS and CL delayed the harvest date through their effect on ripening. Water stress significantly reduced the average crop fresh yield but hardly affected crop dry yield. Both WS and CL affected the distribution of fruit size categories, with the proportion of large fruit decreasing with the increase in crop load and the severity of WS. Conclusion. Water stress reduced fruit fresh weight and fruit fresh yield but not fruit dry weight or dry yield. Crop load reduced fruit fresh and dry weights and yields. Crop load had a negative effect on soluble solids content, while WS had a positive effect. Thus, CL reduced fruit size and soluble solids content, while WS reduced size but improved soluble solids concentration.

Keywords

USAPrunus persicadrought stressplant water potentialphotosynthesisfruitgrowthyieldsugarsÉtats-UnisPrunus persicastress dû à la sécheressepotentiel hydrique des plantesphotosynthèsefruitcroissancerendementsucres
Type
Research Article
Information
Fruits , Volume 61 , Issue 6 , November 2006 , pp. 407 - 418
Copyright
© CIRAD, EDP Sciences, 2006

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Chalmers, D.J., Mitchell, P.D., van Heek, L., Control of peach tree growth and productivity by regulated water supply, tree density, and summer pruning, J. Am. Soc. Hortic. Sci. 106 (1981) 307–312.
Mitchell, P.D., Chalmers, D.J., The effect of reduced water supply on peach tree growth and yields, J. Am. Soc. Hortic. Sci. 107 (1982) 853–856.
Cheng, L., Cheng, S., Shu, H., Luo, X., Effects of mild water stress on CO2 assimilation and water use efficiency of field-grown peach trees, Acta Hortic. 374 (1996) 121–125. CrossRef
Natali, S., Bignami, C., Cammilli, C., Effects of different levels of water supply on gas exchanges of early ripening peaches, Acta Hortic. 374 (1996) 113–120. CrossRef
Girona, J., Mata, M., Goldhamer, D.A., Johnson, R.S., DeJong, T.M., Patterns of soil and tree water status and leaf functioning during regulated deficit irrigation scheduling in peach, J. Am. Soc. Hortic. Sci. 118 (1993) 580–586.
Blanco, A., Pequerul, A., Val, J., Monge, E., Gomez-Aparisi, J., Crop-load effects on vegetative growth, mineral nutrient concentration and leaf water potential in ‘Catherine’ peach, J. Hortic. Sci. 70 (1995) 623–629. CrossRef
Li, S.H., Huguet, J.G., Schoch, P.G., Orlando, P., Response of peach tree growth and cropping to soil water deficit at various phenological stages of fruit development, J. Hortic. Sci. 64 (1989) 541–552. CrossRef
Huguet J.G., Li S.H., Defrance H., Influence de la disponibilité en eau du sol sur la qualité des fruits chez le pêcher Prunus persica L., in: 9e Colloq. Rech. Fruit., Inra/Ctifl, Avignon, 1990, 135–144.
Berman, M.E., DeJong, T.M., Water stress and crop load effects on fruit fresh and dry weights in peach (Prunus persica), Tree Physiol. 16 (1996) 859–864. CrossRef
DeJong, T.M., Fruit effects on photosynthesis in Prunus persica, Physiol. Plantarum 66 (1986) 149–153. CrossRef
Crisosto, C.H, Johnson, R.S., Luza, J.G., Crisosto, G.M., Irrigation regimes affect fruit soluble solids concentration and rate of water loss of ‘O’Henry’ peaches, HortScience 29 (1994) 1169–1171.
DeJong, T.M., Day, K.R., Doyle, J.F., Johnson, R.S., The Kearney Agricultural Center perpendicular “V” (KAC-V) orchard system for peaches and nectarines, Hortic. Technol. 4 (1995) 362–367.
McCutchan, H., Shakel, K.A., Stem-water potential as a sensitive indicator of water stress in prune trees (Prunus domestica L. cv. French), J. Am. Soc. Hortic. Sci. 117 (1992) 607–611.
Mahhou, A., DeJong, T.M., Cao, T., Shackel, K.S., Water stress and crop load effects on vegetative and fruit growth of ‘Elegant Lady’ peach [Prunus persica (L.) Batch] trees, Fruits 60 (2005) 55–68. CrossRef