Calcium sources applied to soil can replace leaf application in ‘Fuji’ apple tree1

Moeses Andrigo Danner,Gener Augusto Penso,Luís César Cassol,Silvia Scariotto,Idemir Citadin

doi:10.1590/1983-40632015v4534457

Abstract

ABSTRACTCalcium increases postharvest conservation of apples. Consequently, several calcium foliar sprays are generally applied to apple trees. Due to the low mobility of calcium in the phloem, foliar sprays may have low efficiency to supply calcium in the fruits. This study aimed to evaluate the efficiency of different sources of calcium applied to the soil, compared to the foliar application, on the content of calcium in the soil, leaves and fruits, on yield and fruit quality of ‘Fuji’ apple trees. The following treatments were tested: control, soil application of calcium chloride, gypsum, Nitrabor®, hydrated lime and pulp sludge, and foliar application of calcium chloride. For all sources in the soil, 80 kg of calcium ha-1 year-1 were applied. For the foliar treatment, ten sprays with 0.4 % of calcium chloride were performed. The experiment was conducted in two seasons (2008/2009 and 2009/2010), in a complete randomized blocks design, with four replicates and two apple trees per plot. Even in a soil with high calcium content, the sources of calcium increase the calcium content in the soil and leaves, as well as the firmness of apples stored for 90 days. The use of gypsum and pulp sludge increase the calcium content in the flesh of ‘Fuji’ apples after two successive applications (2009/2010). The sources of calcium applied to the soil can replace the leaf application commonly used in apple orchards, in order to reduce production costs, provided there is no water restriction in the orchard.

Highlights

Cold storage of apples enables their off-season sale and constant availability in the market
This study aimed to investigate the efficiency of different calcium sources applied to the soil, when compared to foliar calcium application, in terms of calcium content in the soil, leaves and fruit, as well as yield and fruit quality of ‘Fuji’ apple trees
The higher calcium content in this soil layer makes the balance in cation exchange capacity (CEC) more favorable for calcium than aluminum

Summary

Introduction

Cold storage of apples enables their off-season sale and constant availability in the market. Adequate calcium supply in these fruits is essential to improve storage conservation. A constituent of the middle lamella, provides greater rigidity to the cell wall and increases resistance to fungal infection (Tobias et al 1992, Lara et al.2004, Natale et al 2005). Apples with low calcium content exhibit severe bitter pit, a physiological disorder that occurs at postharvest and is detrimental to fruit quality (Amarante et al 2006, 2009 and 2011, Miqueloto et al 2011, Telias et al 2006). Calcium deficiency in fruits can be caused by low calcium supply in the soil and/or water shortage. Calcium uptake and flow into the plant occur through

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Conclusion