Gibberellic Acid (GA3), an Influential Growth Regulator for Physiological Disorder Control and Protracting the Harvesting Season of Sweet Orange
Rizwan Ullah *
Key Laboratory of Horticultural Plant Biology (MOE), Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China and Department of Horticulture, University of Agriculture Peshawar, Pakistan.
Muhammad Sajid
Department of Horticulture, University of Agriculture Peshawar, Pakistan.
Ghulam Nabi
Department of Horticulture, University of Agriculture (Amir Muhammad Khan Campus) Mardan, Pakistan.
Husain Ahmad
Department of Horticulture, University of Agriculture Peshawar, Pakistan and College of Horticulture, Northwest A and F University, yangling, shaanxi, China 712100
Abdur Rab
Department of Horticulture, University of Agriculture Peshawar, Pakistan.
Faheem Ahmed Khan
Molecular Biotechnology, Laboratory of Triticeae crops HZAU Wuhan, China.
Muhammad Shahab
Department of Horticulture, University of Agriculture Peshawar, Pakistan.
Hizar Subthain
National Key Laboratory of crop genetic improvement and centre of plant gene research, HZAU Wuhan 430070, China.
Shah Fahad
National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, MOA Key Laboratory of Crop Ecophysiology and Farming System in the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River, College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China.
Aziz Khan
National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, MOA Key Laboratory of Crop Ecophysiology and Farming System in the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River, College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Citrus particularly sweet orange occupies an exalted position in fruit industry. Quality sweet orange production is affected by various factors including fruit physiological disorders and harvesting season which contribute towards consumer preference. This study was designed to find out an economically feasible solution to these problems. Three different GA3 treatments (10, 20 and 30ppm) were applied as a foliar spray to three different sweet orange cultivars (Blood Red, Mosambi and Succari) at full bloom stage to investigate its influence on Physiological disorder in fruits as well as in shoots, fruit growth and fruit maturity delay. The obtained results revealed that all GA3 treatments specially 30ppm significantly controlled fruit as well as shoots physiological disorders and was also found efficient in case of fruit maturity delay as compared to untreated trees. Finally we were able to conclude that; 30ppm GA3 should be applied as a foliar spray to control fruit and shoot physiological disorders and to protract the harvesting season of sweet orange.
Keywords: Foliar spray, full bloom, gibberellic Acid, Maturity delay, physiological disorder, sweet orange cultivars