Effect of silver thiosulfate on growth and inhibition of natural flowering of four pineapple cultivars

Abstract

Natural flowering (NF) of pineapple is a complex process with multifactorial control that presents several drawbacks that directly affect the management, harvesting and marketing of fruits. The aim of the study was to determine the effect of silver thiosulfate (STS), an ethylene action inhibitor, in inhibiting natural pineapple flowering. The experimental design was a randomized block in a factorial 4×5, with 4 cultivars and 5 STS doses and four replicates, each containing one potted plant. The cultivars studied were ‘IAC Fantastico’, ‘Perola’, ‘MD2’ and ‘Vitoria’. STS doses were 50 mL of solution containing 0, 0.5, 1, 2 or 3.0 mmol L‑1 of STS. The solution was applied in the leaf rosette at 15-day intervals during the normal time of NF in June and July. The characteristics evaluated were weights of fresh and dry matter of each component of the plant, the percentage of plants with NF, fruit weight with and without crown, fruit length, diameter of fruit and number of shoots (seeds) per plant. The soluble solids (SS), firmness, pH, titratable acidity (TA) and ratio of the pulp were also determined. STS application inside the rosette did not inhibit NF but increased “D” leaf dry matter, fruit diameter and reduced pulp pH.