Improving Fruit Quality of Apricot by Means of Preharvest Benzyladenine and Benzyladenine Plus Gibberellin Applications

Abstract

<jats:p>Applications that could improve apricot (<jats:italic>Prunus armeniaca</jats:italic>) fruit size and quality would enhance their marketability. In this study, the effects of preharvest benzyladenine (BA) and BA plus gibberellin (GA) applications on fruit quality of ‘Alyanak’ apricot were investigated. BA (50, 100, and 150 ppm) and BA + GA<jats:sub>4+7</jats:sub> (12.5, 25, and 50 ppm) were applied at the beginning of pit hardening stage. When fruit reached their maturity, samples were harvested and evaluated in terms of: weight, size, firmness, soluble solids content (SSC), acidity, and pH. Fruit treated with BA were significantly heavier and larger than fruit not treated, and there were significant differences in fruit size within the BA-treated fruit. The heaviest and the largest fruit were obtained from 100 to 150 ppm BA concentrations. BA + GA<jats:sub>4+7</jats:sub> treatments did not affect fruit size. Application of 100 ppm BA and 25 ppm BA + GA<jats:sub>4+7</jats:sub> increased fruit firmness at harvest. SSC, pH, and acidity were unaffected by the applications. The results obtained in this study showed a practical benefit of a single application of BA at the end of pit hardening for improving apricot quality. Fruit treated with the optimum dose of BA (100 ppm) were larger and firmer than untreated fruit.</jats:p>

Factors Affecting Quality and Health Promoting Compounds during Growth and Postharvest Life of Sweet Cherry (Prunus avium L.)

“…At the straw-yellow stage applications of “Noir de Guben” cherries with 50, 100, and 150 ppm benzyladenine (BA) and BA combined with 12.5, 25, and 50 ppm gibberellins (GA 4+7 ) improved size and delayed skin color change (Canli et al, 2015a ). BA alone or in combination with GA 4+7 improved storability by maintaining firmness during 30 days in cold storage (4°C) (Canli et al, 2015b ). GA 3 applied at stage I (mesocarp growth consisting of both cell division and elongation) and stage II (endocarp hardening and embryo development) improved final “Bing” fruit weight, but higher fruit weight was also obtained when combined with GA 4+7 (Zhang and Whiting, 2011 ).…”

Plant Growth Regulators Modify Fruit Set, Fruit Quality, and Return Bloom in Sweet Cherry

“…For sweet cherries, fruit size remains the most crucial fruit quality attribute, and developing pragmatic strategies for improving fruit size is of great interest. Previously, preharvest applications of GA showed a positive response on fruit weight enhancement in sweet cherries (Canli et al, 2015;Whiting, 2011, 2013). GAs also produced a positive impact on fruit weight: a 44% gain was observed in 'Tieton', whereas 'Bing' gained 13.2% additional weight compared with control when both were treated with GA 4/7 at bloom stage (Tables 1 and 2).…”

Effects of Plant Growth Regulators on Plum (Prunus domestica L.) Grown on Two Rootstocks at Harvest and at the Postharvest Period

“…Among the preharvest measures which are increasingly drawing the attention of both researchers and producers is the application of plant growth regulators (PGRs). The impact of PGR treatments on Horticulturae 2022, 8, 621 2 of 17 tree growth, productivity, and fruit quality has already been confirmed in different fruit species [3][4][5].…”

“…In apples, BA application was found to affect both cell size and the number of cell layers in the cortex, altering the final fruit size [12]. BA can increase fruit size in apples [14] and pears [9], but it can also affect the size of stone fruit, such as sweet cherries [3] and apricots [15].…”