Influence of Different Irrigation Levels on Anatomical Structure of Buds, Fertility, Productivity, and Fruit Quality of Flame Seedless Grapevines under Arid Climate Conditions

El-sayed, Mohamed E.A; Hammam, Amr Ahmad; S. K. Fayed, Ahmed; Badr Eldin, Rasha

doi:10.21608/asejaiqjsae.2025.462205

Influence of Different Irrigation Levels on Anatomical Structure of Buds, Fertility, Productivity, and Fruit Quality of Flame Seedless Grapevines under Arid Climate Conditions

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

¹ viticulture department-horticulture research institute-Agricultural research center

² Faculty of agriculture, Minia University, El-Minia, Egypt

³ Department of Viticulture, Horticulture Research Institute, Agricultural Research Center

⁴ soil and water department, Faculty of Agriculture, Alexandria University, Egypt

10.21608/asejaiqjsae.2025.462205

Abstract

Abiotic stresses, including drought, significantly impact growth and yield of grapevine. A field experiment was carried out in sandy loam soil in the Nubaria region of Egypt over three consecutive growing seasons. This study examined the effects of irrigation levels on water use efficiency (WUE), yield, fruit quality, and the anatomical structure of buds in 8-year-old Flame Seedless grapevines. Four irrigation regimes were implemented from pre-flowering to harvest: 125%, 100%, 75%, and 60% of field capacity (FC). Results demonstrated that the proportion of dried leaflets in buds and dried leaflet length increased with greater water stress in both seasons. The 60% FC deficit irrigation treatment reduced growth parameters, shoot length, leaf number, leaf area, cluster number, berries number, compactness coefficient, weight, and size of 100 berries, juice volume, and bud fertility percentage, leading to decreased yield in both seasons. In addition, cluster weight was significantly reduced by water deficit only in the second season. Cluster length was not significantly affected by water deficit, while cluster width decreased significantly under the 60% field capacity (FC) regime. There were no significant differences between 125% and 100% FC regarding the weight of 100 berries and juice volume. Irrigation at 125% FC and 100% FC resulted in greater berry diameter and length compared to 75% FC and 60% FC in both seasons. Irrigation levels did not substantially affect total soluble solids (TSS), acidity, or the TSS/acidity ratio, except for acidity and the TSS in the second season. The 75% FC treatments increased anthocyanin content relative to 125% FC and 100% FC in both seasons. Application of a 75% FC irrigation level is recommended for Flame Seedless grapevines to conserve water without reducing yield or fruit quality.

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