Effect of Foliar Application of Micronutrients on Fruit Quality of Peach

Amjad Ali, Sajida Perveen, Syed Noor Muhammad Shah, Zengqiang Zhang, Fazli Wahid, Mohib Shah, Shahida Bibi, Abdul Majid

College of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China.
Department of Agriculture Chemistry, Faculty of Agriculture, Gomal University, D.I. Khan, Pakistan.
Department of Botany, Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan, Pakistan.
Department of Horticulture, Faculty of Agriculture, Gomal University, D. I. Khan, Pakistan.
Department of Weed Science, University of Agriculture, Pe-shawar, Pakistan.
Soil and Environmental Sciences, University of Agriculture, Peshawar, Pakistan.

DOI: 10.4236/ajps.2014.59138                

Abstract

This experiment was conducted to study the effect of foliar spray of micronutrients on quality of peach fruits at Horticulture Farm, University of Agriculture Peshawar during 2010. The experiment was conducted in randomized complete design with six treatments and four replications on peach orchards (early grand). Our pre-treatment soil analysis showed silt loam soil class, alkaline and calcareous in nature and adequate in organic matter. The soil was deficient in P, Zn, Fe and B, whereas adequate in Mn and Cu. The fruit quality was evaluated and maximum fruit length, diameter and yield were noted in T₆ (Zn + Cu + Fe + Mn + B). The juice pH decreased and the juice acidity increased in a linear fashion after foliar spray of micronutrients. The total soluble solids of fresh fruit juice ranged 7.01%-8.88% and vitamin C ranged from 4.80%-7.90% after foliar spray. So the foliar spray of micronutrients significantly (P ≤ 0.05) affected the quality of peach fruit.

Keywords

Acidity; Fruit Quality; Micronutrients; Peach; Spray; Vitamin C

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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