Effect of Balanced Fertilization and Fertilizer Levels on Navel Orange Yield and Fruit Quality

A.E., Zaghloul; R.E., Knany

doi:10.21608/asejaiqjsae.2012.3142

Effect of Balanced Fertilization and Fertilizer Levels on Navel Orange Yield and Fruit Quality

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Zaghloul A.E. ¹
Knany R.E. ²

¹ Fruit Handling Dept., Hort. Res. inst., ARC, Giza, Egypt.

² Soils, Water and Environment Res. Inst., ARC, Giza, Egypt.

10.21608/asejaiqjsae.2012.3142

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted during two successive seasons of 2007/2008 and 2008/2009 on navel orange mature trees at Metobas district, Kafr El-Sheikh governorate, Egypt, to assess effect of the balanced fertilization and fertilization levels on navel orange yield and fruit quality. Four fertilizer treatments of: 1- complete fertilizer (balanced), 2- fertilizer without Mg, 3- Fertilizer without micronutrients, and 4-fertilizer without K with three fertilizer levels L₁, L₂ and L3 were used compared to the farmer treatment. The obtained results can be summarized as follows:
-The balanced fertilizer (complete) had the highest fruit set (7.8 and 8.1%), lowest pre-harvest fruit drop (7.9 and 7.8%), highest fruit number/tree (405.1 and 391.9), highest fruit yield/tree (86.0 and 93.1 kg/tree), highest SSC% (11.9 and 12.3%) and highest VC (58.2 and 58.4 mg/100 ml juice) in the first and second seasons, respectively.
-Balanced fertilizer increased reducing sugar rates by 22.8 and 41.9%, non-reducing sugar by 44 and 16.7% and total sugars by 34.6 and 31.1% over the farmer treatment in the first and second seasons, respectively.
-Balanced fertilizer increased the rates of chlorophyll A, B and total chlorophyll compared to the farmer treatment. The increase rates in total chlorophyll were 45.8 and 44.0% over the farmer treatment in the first and second seasons, respectively.
-Farmer treatment had the lowest fruit set (5.4 and 5.7%), fruit yield (66.8 and 70.2 kg/tree), highest pre-harvest fruit drop (12.9 and 12.4%), lowest acidity values 0.92 and 0.91%, VC (52.3 and 52.7 mg/100 ml juice), reducing sugars (3.5 and 3.1%), non-reducing sugars (2.5 and 3.0%), total sugars (5.9 and 6.1%), chlorophyll A, B and total chlorophyll, in the first and second seasons, respectively.
-Fertilizer without Mg, micronutrients and potassium gave a high values than the farmer treatment for each fruit set (%), fruit number/tree, fruit yield (kg/tree), acidity (%), VC, reducing, non-reducing, total sugars and total chlorophyll. That values were less than the complete fertilizer during the first and second seasons, respectively.
-The increase value rates compared with the farmer treatment were (29.2 and 28.1%) & (36.5 and 28.1%) & (12.5 and 14.0%) in fruit set, (9.1 and 25.5%) & (19.1 and 15.9%) & (21.9 and 0.0%) in yield kg/tree, (6.5 and 6.5%) & (3.3 and 2.2%) & (2.2 and 2.2%) in acidity (2.9 and 3.2%) & (7.3 and 6.8%) & (7.5 and 5.1%) in VC, (2.9 and 12.9%) & (17.1 and 38.7%) & (5.7 and 16.1%) in reducing sugars, (10.2 and 3.3%) & (22.0- and 21.3%) & (17.8 and 9.8%) in total sugars, (39.5 and 28.6%) & (11.3 and 17.1%) & (38.8 and 37.2%) in total chlorophyll during the two seasons for the three treatments, respectively.
-Farmer treatment showed the highest values for pre-harvest fruit drop (12.9 and 12.4%) and SSC% (11.9 and 11.4%) compared with the four treatments during the first and seconds seasons, respectively.

Main Subjects