TITLE:
Effect of Foliar Application of Micronutrients on Fruit Quality of Peach
AUTHORS:
Amjad Ali, Sajida Perveen, Syed Noor Muhammad Shah, Zengqiang Zhang, Fazli Wahid, Mohib Shah, Shahida Bibi, Abdul Majid
KEYWORDS:
Acidity; Fruit Quality; Micronutrients; Peach; Spray; Vitamin C
JOURNAL NAME:
American Journal of Plant Sciences,
Vol.5 No.9,
April
4,
2014
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.