Improving Peach Fruit Quality Traits Using Deficit Irrigation Strategies in Southern Tunisia Arid Area

Abstract

The peach (Prunus persica L.) is one of Tunisia’s major commercial fruit crops and is considered one of the biggest water consumers of all crops. In warm and arid areas of southern Tunisia, irrigation is necessary to ensure orchard longevity and high yield and fruit quality. Nevertheless, under water-scarcity conditions and low water quality, water management should rely on efficient deficit irrigation strategies. In this study, sustained deficit irrigation (DI) and partial root-zone drying (PRD50) at 50% of crop evapotranspiration (ETc) were evaluated for their impact on the primary and secondary metabolites of the peach fruit of early cultivar Flordastar grown in the Tataouine region. A full irrigation (FI) treatment at 100%, etc., was used as a control treatment. Color, dry-matter content, firmness, organic acids, sugars, phenolic compounds, vitamin C, β-carotene and minerals were assessed on harvested mature fruits. Dry-matter content and firmness increased significantly under DI and PRD50 (13% and 15.5%). DI fruit had the highest soluble-solid content (SSC), reaching Brix values of 14.3°. Fruit sorbitol and sucrose contents were not affected by Di and PRD50. Higher glucose in fruit juice was observed in PRD50 (23%) and DI (21.5%) compared to FI, which had the highest malic acid content (33.5–37%). Quinic and citric acids decreased with DI and PRD50, while almost all individual phenolic compounds increased with deficit irrigation. Hydroxycinnamates and anthocyanins were significantly higher in fruits harvested from DI and PRD50 treatments. Proanthocyanidins (catechin and epicatechin) were only improved by DI, while flavone compounds and vitamin C were not affected by irrigation restrictions. β-carotene was higher in fruits yielded under FI (0.71 mg/100 g DM) than DI and PRD50 (0.21–0.43 mg/100 g DM). Macro- and micronutrients significantly increased in DI and PRD50 fruit. A significant difference between DI and PRD50 fruits was observed for Zn and Fe concentrations. This research highlights the positive impact of reduced irrigation on bioactive-fruit quality attributes and the suitability of PRD50 and DI as tools for irrigation management in arid areas of southern Tunisia, contributing to water-saving in orchards and the improvement of fruit commercial value.

Impact of Deficit Irrigation Strategies Using Saline Water on Soil and Peach Tree Yield in an Arid Region of Tunisia

“…Several deficit irrigation strategies have been developed (e.g., regulated deficit irrigation (RDI), sustained deficit irrigation (SDI), or partial root zone drying (PRD), among others), and have shown beneficial impacts both on water saving as well as on WP improvement in arid and semi-arid areas [14][15][16]. The slight yield losses due deficit irrigation were compensated by an improvement in fruit quality for many fruit species, such as Prunus persica [17,18], Malus domestica [19], Vitis vinifera [20], and Prunus domestica [21]. A drip irrigation system is used when applying deficit irrigation and allows for precise control of the water amount applied, especially in the PRD strategy.…”

Chinese olive (Canarium album Rauesch.): a critical review on its nutritional value, phytochemical composition, health benefits, and practical applications

“…As a fresh food fruit, the Chinese olive has rich nutritional value. Studies have shown that it is rich in vitamins and can contain 10 times higher vitamin C (VC) than apple and 5 times higher than pear and peach ( Toumi et al, 2022 ). It is rich in the trace element selenium, also known as the “life element” helping the organism retard aging processes ( Mojadadi et al, 2021 ).…”

Climate Smart Agriculture with Drought Resistant Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) Cultivars under Subtropical Climate

“…"In context of plant biomass production, yield and quality of tomato under deficit irrigation, showed mixed results. Field trials under drought stress either resulted a drastic reduction in dry mass production, or no adverse impacts on yield and quality of fruits" [21][22][23]. "However stress affected yield of tomato when occurred throughout the reproductive stage and development period, but quality during the final or ripening stage" [24].…”