Fruit Cracking Research Articles

Horticulture crop under pressure: Unraveling the impact of climate change on nutrition and fruit cracking

Climate change is increasingly affecting the nutritional content and structural integrity of horticultural crops, leading to challenges such as diminished fruit quality and the exacerbation of fruit cracking. This manuscript systematically explores the multifaceted impacts of these changes, with a particular focus on the nutritional quality and increased incidence of fruit cracking. An exhaustive review of current research identifies the critical role of transcription factors in mediating plant responses to climatic stressors, such as drought, temperature extremes, and saline conditions. The significance of transcription factors, including bHLH, bZIP, DOF, MDP, HD-ZIP, MYB, and ERF4, is highlighted in the development of fruit cracking, underscoring the genetic underpinnings behind stress-related phenotypic outcomes. The effectiveness of greenhouse structures in mitigating adverse climatic effects is evaluated, offering a strategic approach to sustain crop productivity amidst CO2 fluctuations and water scarcity, which are shown to influence plant physiology and lead to changes in fruit development, nutrient dynamics, and a heightened risk of cracking. Moreover, the manuscript delves into advanced breeding strategies and genetic engineering techniques, such as genome editing, to enhance crop resilience against climatic challenges. It also discusses adaptation strategies vital for sustainable horticulture, emphasizing the need to integrate novel genetic insights with controlled environment horticulture to counteract climate change's detrimental effects. The synthesis presented here underscores the urgent need for innovative breeding strategies aimed at developing resilient crop varieties that can withstand climatic uncertainty while preserving nutritional integrity.

Sintesis dan Karakterisasi Katalis Nikel Zeolit Alam Ni/NZA

Research has been conducted to manufacture Ni/NZA for catalytic cracking of empty palm fruit bunches into liquid fuel. The study aims to investigate the impact of metal impregnation and calcination time variations on catalyst crystallinity and morphology. The catalyst is produced in multiple stages, including NZ activation using acid, followed by metal impregnation at 0%, 1%, 3%, and 5% w/w, and calcination at 500oC for 2, 4, and 6 hours, respectively. It is then oxidized at 400oC for 2 hours and reduced at 400oC for 2 hours. The catalyst's crystallinity, morphology, and metal distribution are determined through X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) analysis. The catalyst with the best crystallinity and metal distribution is found to have 3% metal loading and a calcination time of 2 hours.

Progress in Fruit Cracking Control of Gibberellic Acid and Abscisic Acid

Fruit cracking or splitting is a severe physiological disease that significantly affects appearance and quality, compromising the commodity value of fruit and causing substantial economic losses to the producers of several fleshy fruit crops. The growth-promoting plant hormone gibberellins (GAs) and growth-inhibiting abscisic acid (ABA) antagonistically regulate numerous processes throughout the plant life cycle. The homeostasis of GA and ABA plays a significant role in the normal growth and development of fruits, and the imbalance of them may lead to the occurrence of cracking or splitting during the process of fruit growth, development, ripening and postharvest storage. The pathways of GA and ABA metabolism and signaling have been studied widely, and the major components are well characterized, including the genes encoding major biosynthesis and catabolism enzymes and the key signaling components. Nevertheless, our knowledge of the mechanisms of GA and ABA governing fruit cracking is not comprehensive enough. In this review, we summarize the advances in understanding the effects of endogenous GAs and ABA contents in fruits and exogenous GAs and ABA treatments on fruit cracking, and we endeavor to provide some genetic cues on the function of GAs and ABA responsible for fruit cracking modulation. The progress in understanding the molecular bases underlying the actions of GAs and ABA in fruit cracking coordination control will facilitate breeding strategies of cracking-resistant ideotypes of fruits, and also carry great theoretical significance in guiding the establishment of integrated prevention and control measures in fruit cracking.

Citrus Physiological Disorders and Their Ameliorating Control Measures: A Review

Citrus fruits are well known for their taste, flavour, aroma and fragrance, with rich vitamin C content. Fruits are rich in various nutrients, minerals and vitamins because of which they have the important role in pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industries. The citrus fruit cultivation experiences many challenges through biotic and abiotic stresses leading to occurrence of pest and diseases coupled with physiological disorders. The occurrence of pre and post-harvest disorders due to abiotic stresses and improper harvesting methods and unhygienic field conditions would lead to reduction in yield, fruit quality and commercial value of the produce and products. Improper harvesting and management in citrus fruits reduce the quality and appearance of the fruits. Pre-harvest disorders like granulation, fruit cracking, puffiness, superficial rind pitting, creasing and sunburn, and post-harvest disorders such as chilling injury, oleocellosis, rind staining, peteca, stylar end breakdown and stem end rind breakdown are the resultant disorders repeatedly noticed in citrus fruits. Maintenance of garden hygiene, flower regulation, water and nutrient management, bahar treatment, use of growth regulators and crop load coupled with canopy management would help in minimising the above disorders in citrus fruit crops.

Genome-Wide Exploration of the Ethylene-Responsive Element-Binding Factor Gene Family in Sweet Cherry (Prunus avium L.): Preliminarily Unveiling Insights into Normal Development and Fruit Cracking

The ERF subfamily, a significant part of the APETALA2/ethylene-responsive element-binding factor (AP2/ERF) transcription family, plays a crucial role in plant growth, development, and stress responses. Despite its importance, research on this gene family in sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) is limited. This study identified and analyzed the sweet cherry ERF subfamily in terms of classification, physicochemical properties, structural characteristics, chromosome distribution, gene replication and collinearity, Cis-acting elements, and potential protein interactions. Preliminary investigations of transcription during fruit cracking and normal development were also conducted. Fifty ERFs (PatiERF1~50) were identified, distributed unevenly across eight chromosomes and classified into ten groups with nineteen conserved motifs. Collinearity analysis with other plant species revealed homology, with the highest number of ERF orthologous genes found in apple (Malus domestica L.). Cis-acting elements, particularly abscisic acid response factor, were abundant in PatiERF promoters. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) and quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR) analysis indicated the involvement of PatiERFs in sweet cherry fruit development and cracking, and nine and four significant candidates related to these processes were speculated, respectively. Furthermore, four other classes of transcription factors (TFs), namely MYB, GRAS, BHLH, and BZIP, as well as 23 structure genes, were predicted to have co-expression and interaction relationships with PatiERFs during fruit development. This suggests their potential synergistic regulation with ERFs in the cherry fruit development process. Our study represents the first comprehensive genome-wide analysis of the ERF subfamily in sweet cherry, laying a crucial foundation for a deeper understanding of the molecular mechanisms correlated with fruit growth, development, and cracking mediated by ERF genes.

A rapid and efficient Agrobacterium-mediated transient transformation system in grape berries.

Transient transformation is extremely useful for rapid in vivo assessment of gene function, especially for fruit-related genes. Grape berry, while an important fruit crop, is recalcitrant to transient transformation, due to the high turgor pressure in its mesocarp cells that limits the ability of Agrobacterium to penetrate into the tissue. It is urgent to establish a simple transient transformation system for rapid analysis of gene function. In this study, different injection methods, grape genotypes, and developmental stages were tested in order to develop a rapid and efficient Agrobacterium-mediated transient transformation methodology for grape berries. Two injection methods, namely punch injection and direct injection, were evaluated using the β-glucuronidase (GUS) gene and by x-gluc tissue staining and 4-methylumbelliferyl-β-D-glucuronide fluorescence analysis. The results indicated that there were no significant differences on transformation effects between the two methods, but the latter was more suitable because of its simplicity and convenience. Six grape cultivars ('Hanxiangmi', 'Moldova', 'Zijixin', 'Jumeigui', 'Shine-Muscat', and 'A17') were tested for transient transformation. 'Hanxiangmi', 'Moldova', and 'Zijixin' grape berries were not suitable for agroinfiltration due to frequently fruit cracking, browning, and formation of scar skin. The fruit integrity rates of 'Jumeigui', 'Shine-Muscat', and 'A17' berries were all above 80%, and GUS activity was detected in the berries of the three cultivars 3-14days after injection with the Agrobacterium culture, while higher GUS activities were observed in the 'Jumeigui' berries. The levels of GUS activity in injected berries at 7-8weeks after full blooming (WAFB) were more than twice at 6 WAFB. In subsequent assays, the over-expression of MYB transcription factor VvMYB44 via transient transformation accelerated the anthocyanin accumulation and fruit coloring through raising the expression levels of VvLAR1, VvUFGT, VvLDOX, VvANS, and VvDFR, which verified the effectiveness of this transformation system. These experiments finally identified the reliable grape cultivars and suitable operational approach for transient transformation and further indicated that this Agrobacterium-mediated transient transformation system was efficient and suitable for the elucidation of gene function in grape berries.

La2O3 Nanoparticles Can Cause Cracking of Tomato Fruit through Genetic Reconstruction.

La2O3 nanoparticles (NPs) have shown great potential in agriculture, but cracking of plant sensitive tissue could occur during application, resulting in a poor appearance, facilitating entry for insects and fungi, and increasing economic losses. Herein, exocarp cracking mechanisms of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) fruit in response to La2O3 NPs were investigated. Tomato plants were exposed to La2O3 NPs (0-40 mg/L, 90 days) by a split-root system under greenhouse condition. La2O3 NPs with high concentrations (25 and 40 mg/L) increased the obvious cracking of the fruit exocarp by 20.0 and 22.7%, respectively. After exposure to 25 mg/L La2O3 NPs, decreased thickness of the cuticle and cell wall and lower wax crystallization patterns of tomato fruit exocarp were observed. Biomechanical properties (e.g., firmness and stiffness) of fruit exocarp were decreased by 34.7 and 25.9%, respectively. RNA-sequencing revealed that the thinner cuticle was caused by the downregulation of cuticle biosynthesis related genes; pectin remodeling, including the reduction in homogalacturonan (e.g., LOC101264880) and rhamnose (e.g., LOC101248505), was responsible for the thinner cell wall. Additionally, genes related to water and abscisic acid homeostasis were significantly upregulated, causing the increases of water and soluble solid content of fruit and elevated fruit inner pressure. Therefore, the thinner fruit cuticle and cell wall combined with the higher inner pressure caused fruit cracking. This study improves our understanding of nanomaterials on important agricultural crops, including the structural reconstruction of fruit exocarp contributing to NPs-induced cracking at the molecular level.

Effect of Foliar Feeding with Nutrients and Bioregulators on Yield and Quality Attributes of Litchi cv. Bombai

Litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) is considered one of the most important sub-tropical fruits of the world. In the western part of Odisha, India, litchi growers are facing problems of unstable and lower marketable yield and inferior quality due to a higher incidence of fruit cracking, fruit drop, low sugar content, and higher fruit acidity. Keeping in mind the positive effects of nutrients and bioregulators, the current study was conducted to elucidate their impact on fruit yield and quality in the farmers’ field of Jamankira block in Sambalpur district of Odisha, which is under the care of Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology, India. For this study, eight-year-old litchi trees were selected. With 12 treatments, the experiment was set up in a Randomized Block Design replicated thrice, as follows: T1: spray treatment with Borax—0.5%; T2: spray treatment with Borax—0.3%; T3: spray treatment with ZnSO4—0.75%; T4: spray treatment with ZnSO4—0.5%; T5: spray treatment with CaCl2—0.5%; T6: spray treatment with CaCl2—0.1%; T7: spray treatment with humic acid—1.5%; T8: spray treatment with humic acid—1%; T9: spray treatment with seaweed extract—0.5%; T10: spray treatment with seaweed extract—0.1%; T11: foliar spray with NAA—20 ppm; and T12: control (Water Spray). The current study compared foliar feeding treatments comprising different nutrient and bioregulators, which were applied during the first week of December, just after the completed formation of new leaves and the untreated control. The highest total number of fruits per plant was recorded in plants sprayed with 0.5% ZnSO4 (T4) followed by those treated with 1% humic acid (T8). The highest total fruit yield was recorded in plants subjected to foliar feeding with 0.3% Borax (T2) which was found to be statistically similar to plants treated with 0.1% seaweed extract (T10) and 0.5% seaweed extract (T9). Among the treatments, a better response, i.e., a higher number of marketable fruits and marketable yield, was recorded in litchi plants treated with 0.3% Borax (T2) followed by 0.5% zinc sulphate (T4), 1% humic acid (T8), and 0.1% CaCl2 (T6). The application of 1% humic acid (T8) followed by 1.5% humic acid (T9) enhanced fruit setting (%) and fruit retention rates (%) and reduced the fruit drop rate (%). The enhanced fruit size (fruit length and fruit width) and higher fruit weight was obtained in litchi plants treated with 0.3% Borax. The foliar application of 0.3% Borax (T2) also resulted in a higher TSS, total sugars, reducing sugar content, lower acidity, the highest aril weight, and lower seed weight in litchi cv. Bombai. In this research, among the five principal components, only PC1 demonstrated approximately 45.14% variability within the influential axes. PC1 contributed the highest proportion (48.9%) to the overall variability, followed by PC2 with 29.1%, PC3 with 11.9%, PC4 with 0.59%, and PC5 with 0.20%. Consequently, the outcomes of the principal component analysis indicate the presence of extensive variability among treatments.

Factors influencing fruit cracking: an environmental and agronomic perspective.

Fruit cracking, a widespread physiological disorder affecting various fruit crops and vegetables, has profound implications for fruit quality and marketability. This mini review delves into the multifaceted factors contributing to fruit cracking and emphasizes the pivotal roles of environmental and agronomic factors in its occurrence. Environmental variables such as temperature, relative humidity, and light exposure are explored as determinants factors influencing fruit cracking susceptibility. Furthermore, the significance of mineral nutrition and plant growth regulators in mitigating fruit cracking risk is elucidated, being calcium deficiency identified as a prominent variable in various fruit species. In recent years, precision farming and monitoring systems have emerged as valuable tools for managing environmental factors and optimizing fruit production. By meticulously tracking parameters such as temperature, humidity, soil moisture, and fruit skin temperature, growers can make informed decisions to prevent or alleviate fruit cracking. In conclusion, effective prevention of fruit cracking necessitates a comprehensive approach that encompasses both environmental and agronomic factors.

Influence of NAA and Zinc Sulphate on Fruiting Parameters and Marketable Yield of Litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) cv. Rose Scented

This experiment was conducted in 2022 and 2023 at the Horticulture Garden, Department of Fruit Science, C.S. Azad University of Agriculture and Technology, Kanpur (U.P.). On three replications with sixteen treatments, the Factorial Completely Randomized Design (CRD) was used, four levels of NAA (0, 25, 50, and 75 ppm), zinc sulphate (0, 0.2, 0.4, and 0.6 percent), and their combination were sprayed twice, on January 28 and March 16 of each year, respectively, before flowering and fruit setting (at pea stage). This study examines the effects of NAA and ZnSO4 on litchi cv. Rose scented for enhanced flowering, and high yield of improved quality fruits of litchi. According to the findings, the treatment with NAA 50ppm and 0.4% zinc improved fruiting-like; fruit set per panicle (258.90 and 259.41), fruit count before the second foliar spray at the pea stage (45.81 and 49.19), fruit count at pit hardening stage (39.15 and 38.70), fruit count at ripening stage (22.80 and 23.44) with a decreased fruit cracking (2.14 and 2.10) and higher yield of marketable fruits (78.34 and 78.29 kg/plant). The consequences of the medium concentration also showed the highest physical parameters of fruit length (3.57 and 3.60 cm), largest fruit diameter (3.22 and 3.20 cm) and fruit weight (20.12 and 22.28 g). It was concluded that the application of NAA and zinc had a non-significant impact on fruiting and quality of litchi, resulting in maximum fruit set and retention and yield-related characteristics like fruit weight that ultimately led to an increase in the yield per plant.

PpAmy1 Plays a Role in Fruit-Cracking by Regulating Mesocarp Starch Hydrolysis of Nectarines.

Nectarine [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch var.] fruits are highly susceptible to cracking during the ripening process, which significantly decreases their commercial value. In this study, we investigated the underlying mechanism of nectarine fruit-cracking using two nectarine varieties, namely, "Qiannianhong" (cracking-susceptible) and "CR1012" (cracking-resistant). Our findings indicate that nectarine fruit-cracking occurs during the second stage of fruit expansion. Despite no differences in epicarp cell size between "Qiannianhong" and "CR1012", the mesocarp cells of "Qiannianhong" were larger than those of "CR1012". Moreover, a comparison of starch hydrolysis between the two varieties revealed that "CR1012" had higher starch content in the mesocarp but lower soluble sugar content compared to "Qiannianhong". Additionally, by testing the α-amylase and β-amylase activity of the mesocarp, our results showed a difference only in α-amylase activity between the two varieties. Furthermore, qRT-PCR detection indicated a higher expression level of the PpAmy1 (α-amylase synthesis gene) in "Qiannianhong" compared to "CR1012". To further investigate the role of PpAmy1, we employed RNAi technology to suppress its expression in "Qiannianhong" fruits. The results showed a significant reduction in α-amylase activity, starch hydrolysis, soluble sugar content, cell size of the mesocarp, and fruit-cracking. These findings underscore the pivotal role of PpAmy1 in the occurrence of nectarine fruit cracking.

Fruit Cracking Behavior of Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) Varieties in Response to Their Fruit Size and Nutrient Composition

Fruit Cracking Behavior of Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) Varieties in Response to Their Fruit Size and Nutrient Composition

Physiological Mechanisms of Citrus Fruit Cracking: Study on Cell Wall Components, Osmoregulatory Substances, and Antioxidant Enzyme Activities.

Fruit cracking affects both the yield and economic efficiency of citrus; however, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Therefore, this study focused on resistant and susceptible cultivars to identify the mechanisms underlying fruit cracking. The results showed that in 'Mingrijian', pectin morphological transformation and hemicellulose and lignin degradation in the pericarp were important contributing factors. During the critical fruit-cracking period (115-150 days after flowering), the water-soluble pectin, protopectin, and lignin contents in the pericarp of 'Daya' presented inverse changes relative to those in 'Mingrijian', thus enhancing the mechanical properties and resistance of pericarp. From 115 to 150 days after flowering, the soluble sugar content in the pulp of 'Mingrijian' increased rapidly by 97.35%, aiding in pulp water absorption and expansion. Moreover, the soluble protein content in the pericarp of 'Mingrijian' exhibited a declining trend and was lower than that of 'Daya', thus affecting the overall metabolism. The superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity in the pericarp of 'Mingrijian' gradually decreased from 115 to 180 days after flowering, while the peroxidase (POD) activity remained at a low level, resulting in weaker antioxidant capacity and lower environmental resistance. This study provides valuable insights into the mechanisms of citrus fruit cracking, laying the foundation for preventive and control strategies.

Response of nutrients on fruit cracking in different cultivars of Bael (Aegle marmelos L.) under sodic soil

Response of nutrients on fruit cracking in different cultivars of Bael (Aegle marmelos L.) under sodic soil

Putrescine Increases Frost Tolerance and Effectively Mitigates Sweet Cherry (Prunus avium L.) Cracking: A Study of Four Different Growing Cycles

Sweet cherry producers must deal with different climactic challenges annually, specifically the impact of spring frost and the inherent risk of fruit cracking. This susceptibility arises from the simultaneous occurrence of spring frost during the bloom stage or the sweet cherry cracking at vulnerable maturity stages in sweet cherry trees during persistent rainfall. Given the change in climatic patterns, the implementation of new strategies and innovative approaches becomes imperative to alleviate potential damage from these climatic adversities. This study aims to explore—for the first time—the effectiveness of preharvest putrescine applications during the flowering stage and ripening on-tree to increase tolerance in sweet cherry against adverse climatic events throughout its on-tree development and at the time of harvest. In this context, foliar applications of putrescine at concentrations of 1 and 10 mM were administered to distinct sweet cherry cultivars, namely, ‘Prime Giant’ and ‘Sweetheart’. Over the course of four growing seasons, our investigation focused on evaluating the influence of this natural elicitor on the frost resilience of flower buds during the preharvest period and its impact on reducing fruit cracking in these selected cultivars. In this sense, the overall malondialdehyde content exhibited a reduction in flower buds treated with putrescine, and the fruit set experienced an increase across the majority of evaluated growing seasons. On the other hand, the incidence of sweet cherry cracking in putrescine-treated sweet cherries showed a consistent reduction in all the studied growing seasons. Our results indicate that preharvest treatments with putrescine effectively alleviate the susceptibility of flower buds to spring frost and significantly diminish fruit cracking, thereby enhancing the overall tolerance to abiotic stress. Furthermore, we evaluated different quality parameters at the time of harvest, including fruit firmness, external color, total soluble solids, and total acidity. Generally, the observed changes in these parameters were delayed in putrescine-treated fruit as compared to the control batch or remained unaffected. For this reason, the implementation of preharvest treatments based on putrescine emerges as a valuable strategy for adapting to climate change and mitigating the impact of abiotic stress, potentially increasing sweet cherry production.

Effect of different treatments to prevent fruit cracking in 'Sweetheart', 'Regina' and '0900 Ziraat' cherry cultivars

Kiraz yetiştirciliğinde derim zamanına denk gelen uzun süren yağışlar meyvede çatlamaya neden olmaktadır. Bu durum ürün kaybına ve meyve kalitesinin düşmesine neden olmaktadır. Bu çalışmada, farklı uygulamaların Maxma14 anacı üzerine aşılı 7 yaşındaki ‘‘Sweetheart’ ‘Regina’ ve ‘0900 Ziraat’ kiraz çeşitlerinde ben düşme döneminde yapılan Biostimulant (Green Stim, Green Miracle), Bitki Büyüme Düzenleyici (GA3), Kalsiyum Klorit (CaCl2) ve kombinasyonu (CaCl2+GA3) uygulamalarının meyve çatlamasını önlenmesi üzerine etkilerinin araştırılmıştır. Çalışma, 2020-2021 döneminde 1100 m rakımlı Adana ilinin Pozantı ilçesinde bulunan kiraz bahçesinde yürütülmüştür. Araştırmada, derim zamanı, meyve kalite kriterleri (Meyve ağırlığı, SÇKM, meyve eti sertliği, pH, kabuk rengi) ve çatlama indexi saptanmıştır. Sonuç olarak uygulamaların kontrolle kıyaslandığında, özellikle sertlik buna bağlı olarak da çatlama indexi değerlerinde büyük farklılıklar saptanmıştır. Çatlamaya en dayanıklı çeşitde %14 ile Regina ve bunu %19.04 ile 0900 Ziraat çeşidi izlemiştir. En hassas çeşit ise %31.20 ile Sweetheart çeşidi olmuştur. Green Stim en etkili uygulama olmuştur. Green Stim uygulaması Regina çeşidinde çatlamayı %85 oranında azaltarak %2 ye düşürmüştür. Benzer şekilde aynı uygulama Sweetheart çeşidinde %85, 0900 Ziraat çeşidinde ise %84 oranında çatlamayı önlediği saptanmıştır. Sonuçlara göre Green Stim uygulaması çatlamayı önleme üzerinde en etkili uygulama olmuştur. Üretici tarafından en çok kullanılan CaCl2 uygulaması ise özellikle çatlamaya daha hassas olan Sweetheart çeşidinde %57 oranında çatlamayı önlemiştir.

Nano-enhanced growth and resilience strategies for Pomegranate cv. Wonderful: Unveiling the impact of zinc and boron nanoparticles on fruit quality and abiotic stress management

The pomegranate fruit is an extremely popular fruit that is grown in various regions around the world. Pomegranate cv. Wonderful confronts severe abiotic stress disorders, like fruit cracking and sunburn, which decrease fruit quality. Nanoparticles offer potential for improving nutrient usage efficiency and lowering undesirable environmental repercussions. During three consecutive stages of development, namely the peak flowering stage, six weeks after peak flowering, and one month prior to harvest, magnificent pomegranate trees were subjected to separate applications of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) and boron oxide nanoparticles (B2O3NPs) at concentrations of 0, 250, 500, and 1000 parts per million (ppm). These treatments were carried out in both the 2021 and 2022 growing seasons. Positive effects were observed at concentrations of 500 and 1000 ppm for ZnONPs and a concentration of 1000 ppm for B2O3NPs on the vegetative growth parameters such as shoot length, leaf area, leaves number per shoot, and canopy volume, besides, leaf chemical characteristics such as leaf chlorophyll concentration and leaf nutrient content such as of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), zinc (Zn), and boron (B). Spraying with 500 and 1000 ppm B2O3NPs reduces the percentage of fruit sunburn, cracking and increased fruiting percentage such as initial fruit set (%), fruit retention (%), total yield of fruits (kg/tree), and increasing yield (%), while fruit drop % was decreased in comparison to other treatments. In both seasons, T4 (22.37, 22.0 %) and T7 (18.74, 19.490 %) showed an increase in initial fruit set (%). Similarly, there was an increase in fruit retention (%) with T4 (33.08, 34.550 %) and T7 (29.13, 29.430 %) compared to the control. The highest yield increasing percentages were observed with T4 (98.88, 100.270 %) and T3 (66.65, 64.980 %) compared to the control. On the other hand, T4 (8.24, 8.04 %) had the lowest fruit cracking, followed by T7 (12.73, 9.9 %) in the 2021 and 2022 seasons. Similarly, the lowest percentage of sunburned fruit was observed with T4 (20.47, 20.4 %) and T4 (18.43, 16.77 %) in the two seasons compared to the control. In general, our findings indicate that the application of ZnONPs and B2O3NPs on fully bloomed wonderful pomegranate trees, six weeks after full bloom, and one month prior to harvest, resulted in enhanced growth and yield. Additionally, this treatment exhibited a reduction in abiotic stress-related issues, such as fruit cracking and sunburn.

Effect of bagging materials and time on fruit quality of litchi (Litchi chinensis) cv. Shahi in Nagaland

The present experiment was conducted during 2020–22 at research farm of School of Agriculture Sciences, Nagaland University, Medziphema campus, Nagaland on effect of bagging in quality of litchi fruits cv. Shahi was Experiment conducted by using3 different bagging materials, i.e. Non- woven Polypropylene White (PPW), Polypropylene Pink (PPP), Brown paper Bag (BPB) and control (no bagging) were used to bagged the fruit bunches at three different days after fruit set, viz. 15 DAFS, 25 DAFS and 30 DAFS. Results indicated that PPP bags gave the best result with higher total sugar (15.21%), TSS (21.30 ºB), TSS: acid ratio (50.34) and low incidence of sunburn (3.59%), fruit cracking (1.71%) in comparison to control, whereby, higher values of anthocyanin content (26.11 mg/100 g) and fruit weight (23.12 g) were recorded in BPB. PPP and BPB bagging materials were found to be the best of the treatments to create mean microclimate inside bag to improve fruit colour and other quality parameters. In the case of time of bagging, 15 DAFS was found to give higher performance as compared to 25 DAFS and 30 DAFS with maximum individual TSS content (21.30 ºB), TSS-acid ratio (50.34) and low Sunburn (3.59%) and cracking percentage (1.71%). As such, bagging with PPP at 15 DAFS was found to give the best treatment.

Harnessing psychoenergetics through meditation techniques to enhance yield and quality of litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.)

An experiment was conducted to assess the effect of psychoenergetic energy in litchi as positive and negative thoughts using a simple meditation technique at ICAR-NRC on Litchi, Muzaffarpur. The plant produced 24.75 g of fruit given positive energy, while the plant with negative thought energy produced 22.12 g of fruit. The fruit and seed weight increased by 11.88% and 13.63%, respectively, due to positive energy. The number of fruit retentions increased by 23.77% due to positive energy. Anthocyanin content in pericarp was increased by 5.45% in plants given positive energy. Fruit qualities were also significantly affected by psychoenergy. TSS (Brix) was significantly increased by 13.54% in plants given positive energy as compared to negative energy, and titratable acidity was reduced by 25% due to positive energy. Ascorbic acid was also increased by 30% in plant given positive thoughts. Sun burn was reduced by 54.76% and fruit cracking by 63.64% due to energy of thought. Fruit borer infestation was reduced by 70%, and mite infestation was reduced by 90% in plants given positive energy. The psychoenergetic potential is vast, and its ability to improve crop yield and quality cannot be overstated. The hidden power of thought is being practiced by all, but mostly people do not know this power and use it in an improper manner. This is a high time when we need to practice generating powerful thoughts to change present-day agriculture and its dependents.

Nectarine Disease Identification Based on Color Features and Label Sparse Dictionary Learning with Hyperspectral Images

Fruit cracking and rust spots are common diseases of nectarines that seriously affect their yield and quality. Therefore, it is essential to construct fast and accurate disease-identification models for agricultural products. In this paper, a sparse dictionary learning method was proposed to realize the rapid and nondestructive identification of nectarine disease based on multiple color features combined with improved LK-SVD (Label K-Singular Value Decomposition). According to the color characteristics of the nectarine itself and the significant color differences existing in the three categories of nectarine (diseased, normal, and background parts), multiple color spaces of RGB, HSV, Lab, and YCbCr were studied. It was concluded that the G channel in RGB space, Y channel in YCbCr space, and L channel in Lab space can better distinguish the diseased part from the other parts. At the model-training stage, pixels of the diseased, normal, and background parts in the nectarine image were randomly selected as the initial training sets, and then, the neighboring image blocks of the pixels were selected to construct the feature vectors based on the above color space channels. An improved LK-SVD dictionary learning algorithm was proposed that integrated the category label into the process of dictionary learning, and thus, an over-complete feature dictionary with significant discrimination was obtained. At the model-testing stage, the orthogonal matching pursuit (OMP) algorithm was used for sparse reconstruction of the original data, which can obtain the classification categories based on the optimized feature dictionary. The experimental results show that the sparse dictionary learning method based on multi-color features combined with improved LK-SVD can identify fruit cracking and rust spot diseases of nectarines quickly and accurately, and the average overall classification accuracies were 92.06% and 88.98%, respectively, which were better than those of k-nearest neighbor (KNN), support vector machine (SVM), DeepLabV3+, and Unet++; the identification results of DeepLabV3+ and Unet++ were also relatively high, but their average time costs were much higher, requiring 126.46~265.65 s. It is demonstrated that this study can provide technical support for disease identification in agricultural products.