Effect of regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) on the production and quality of pear Triunfo de Viena variety under tropical conditions

Abstract

Depletion of water resources, high water costs and increased demand require improvements in the efficient use of water. The objective of this experiment was to determine the effect of regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) on pear fruit quality (Pyrus communis cv Triunfo of Viena), which was compared to control irrigated plants at 100 % crop evapotranspiration (ETc) under tropical conditions. The irrigation treatments consisted of the application of water regimes corresponding to 74 % and 48 % ETc in the T2 treatment and 60 % and 27 % ETc in the T3 treatment in 2014 and 2015, respectively, during the period of rapid fruit growth. The irrigation reduction in T2 and T3 during this period represented a water savings of 26.4 % and 39.6 % in 2014 and 51.7 % and 72.8 % in 2015, respectively. In production, the Number of fruits per tree and distribution of fruits by size during the two years did not have significant differences between the treatments. The RDI did not affect fruit firmness, pigments (Chlorophyll and carotenoids), color index, content of phenols, sugars or acids at harvest, but there were important water savings. The respiration rate was lower in 2015, with RDI 60 %. Therefore, RDI is an efficient irrigation technique recommended for pear production under tropical conditions.