[Plant Archives Vol. 10 No.2,2010 pp. 757-759 ISSN 0972-5210 INFLUENCE OF PRE-HARVEST APPLICATION GROWTH REGULATOR AND CALCIUM ON POST HARVEST FRUIT CALCIUM CONTENT AND FRUIT YIELD P. Balasubramanian’, G. Balakrishnamoorthy’, V. Sivakumar’ and R. Balakumbahan* 'Soil and Water Management Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Kattuthottam Thanjavur ~ 613 501 (Tamil Nadu), India. *Horticultural College and Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore ~ 641 003 (Tamil Nadu), India. *Agricultural Research Station, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Bhavanisagar — 638 451, Erode District (Tamil Nadu), India, ‘Horticultural Research Station, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Pechiparai ~ 629 161, Kanyakumari District (Tamil Nadu), India. Abstract Bhendi plants were sprayed once atthe pre-flowering stage with varying concentrations of CaCl, (0.25, 0.50 and 0.75%), GA, (50, 100 and 150 ppm) and water spray (control). The results revealed that yield attributes of bhendi increased with increasing concentrations of preharvest sprays of CaCl, and growth hormone (GA, upto the optimal concentrations of 0.5% and 100 ppm, respectively. The exceeding concentrations had inhibitory effects on these parameters. The Ca content of bhendi fruits increased dramatically with the application of preharvest foliar sprays of either of the chemicals at the optimal concentrations. Further, microtome study was undertaken to determine the role of Ca in cell wall thickening and turgidity maintenance in the fruits. The data have vividly revealed that Ca accumulation was indicated in the microtome sectioning by the appearance of blackening around the cell which was bleak or absent in the unsprayed control. The preharvest foliar spray of CaCl, (0.5%) ‘and GA, (100ppm) enhanced the yield by 10.5 and 9.65 Uha, respectively, as against the control (8.12 ha). Thus, there is an advantage of getting high fruit yield by 1.5-2.0 ha for the preharvest foliar spray. Key words : Pre-harvest, post-harvest, calcium content, fruit yield Introduction Vegetables are rich source of nutrients like vitamins, fibres and minerals, which provides nutritional security to human population. Among the vegetables grown in India, bhendi (Abelmoschus escultentus) occupies 6 per cent of the total area under vegetables (0.36 million hectares) 5 per cent of the total pool of vegetables produced (3.50 million tones). However, India is the largest producer of bhendi in the world playinga key role in the production of oriental vegetables. About 70 per centof the bhendi is being produced in India out of which 60 per cent is exported and earn considerable foreign exchange. Calcium is known to accumulate in middle lamella of the cell wall resulting in thickening of cell wall of plants. This process is widely believed to preserve the fruits from deterioration by regulating the respiration rate and minimize the evolution of ethylene from tender fruits. Itis hypothesized that the application of Ca through foliar feeding enriches the Ca content in the cell wall that effectively reduces the respiration rate thereby conserves moisture content and freshness of fruits. However, no research evidence is available on quality of bhendi as to the influence of pre-and postharvest treatments for a specific elite genotype. With this in view, the figld and laboratory experiment were conducted by spraying the bhendi plants to graded levels of Ca or growth regulator at the pre-flowering stage and the produce harvested ‘was assessed to determine whether this technique would improve the produce marketability of the cultivar Arka Anamika, Materials and Methods Field and laboratory experiments were conducted at the University Orchard, Horticultural College and758 P, Balasubramanian et al Table I : Effect of preharvest spray on physico-chemical changes of bhendi fruits “Treatments | Calcium | Yield/ | Estimated content plant yield (mgi00g) | @ (t/ha) m 631 226.12 812 T, 62 263.10 922, T, 6701 275.13 9.65 1, 675 270.16 9.45 1, [6768 262.14 982, 7, (68.03, 298.72 10s 1, 6789, 214.12 809 SEd 0294 15209__|_0468 ©) 0.05) O64 33.138 | 1021 Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore. Coimbatore is geographically located at 11°02' North latitude and 77°03" East longitude at an altitude of 426.76 meters above mean sea level. Preharvest treatments consist of GA, and CaCl, were sprayed once before on set of anthesis. To obtain fr at the required stage of maturity, the date of anthesis of flower on the plants was marked through tags to each flower on a daily basis. Fruits of 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 days old were harvested separately with stalk on a single day during morning hours. Ten fruits selected at random in each stage of harvest formed one replication. Similarly three such lots were utilized for each stage of harvest for recording the observations. The trial was laid out in Randomized Block Design (RBD) with four replications. The treatments consisted of the following: T Control GA, 50 ppm GA, 100 ppm GA, 150 ppm = CaCl, 0.25 per cent = CaCl, 0.50 per cent a CaCl, 0.75 per cent Observations are recorded on fruit calcium content (mg/100g), fruit yield/ plant (g) and estimated yield (t/ ha). Further, in order to study the ultra structural change in the peel of calcium treated fruits, microtome study was undertaken and anatomical observations were carried out under microscope following the method suggested by Johansen (1960). Results and Discussion Preharvest foliar spray of GA, at 100 ppm and CaCl, at 0.5 per cent had increased the fruit yield of bhendi significantly. The fruit yields produced were 10.5 and ‘ SA RAaaAs 9.65 vha when bhendi plants sprayed with 0.5 per cent CaCl, and 100 ppm GA,, respectively. The increase in fruit yield was to the tune of 10-20 per cent in comparison to the control. Despite the yield increase observed for foliar spray there was a reduction in fruit yield as a result of exceeding concentration beyond the optimum level of, 0.75 per cent CaCl, (T,) which produced only 8 tha. Preharvest spray of GA, or CaCl, increased the calcium content of bhendi fruits regardless of varying level of concentrations. The best treatment GA, 100 ppm (67.0 mg/100g) and 0.5 per cent CaCl, (68.0 mg/100g) have recorded significantly higher calcium content than the control fruits (66.3 mg/100g). ‘The calcium nutrition in plants thickened the middle lamella of the cell wall by accumulating calcium pectate, which prevent loss of moisture from the fruits and ultimately yields better quality fruit. This phenomenon has been well studied by Subbiah (1994) and reported that calcium content of the fruit is associated with firmness of the fruit as a result of maintenance of turgidity of the fruit and fruit firmness and overall yield has increased by 2 t/ha due to the preharvest foliar spray of 0.5 per cent CaCl,. In addition to the calcium spray, the preharvest application of growth regulator (GA,) at 100 ppm had increased the fruit yield of Bhendi (9.65 Uha) in comparison to the control 8.12 t/ha. The GA applic: orchestrates physiological changes that result in prolonged shelf life of fruits. Singh ef al. (1974) reported that combined spray of urea (2%) and GA (150 ppm) enhanced the yield and quality of bhendi. Vijay Kumar and Ray (2000) reported that foliar spray of GA, at 100 ppm increased the curd circumferences and yield of cauliflower. Conversely, preharvest spray of GA, up to 150 ppm did not alter the yield of tomato. Rao and Ranganath (1988) has shown that the concentration of GA, spray up to 5 ppm found effective in maintaining the nutritional status of the plant while exceeding concentration beyond the optimal level had antagonistic (inhibitory) effect. Therefore, the optimal concentration of growth regulator spray is essential to gain advantage of minimizing postharvest losses through preharvest spray of growth regulators. Rao and Ranganath (1988) have shown that preharvest spray of 0.5 per cent CaCl, had a beneficial influence on the improvement of fruit firmness, The present study also supported the hypothesis and revealed that maintenance of turgidity in the fruit would have resulted in enhancement of fruit girth, fruit length and fruit weight. Ray (2002) reported that calcium spray has minimized the loss of moisture and physiological loss in weight in tomato fruits and improved the shelf life of the fruit by regulating the moisture content. In the presentPre-harvest Application Growth Regulator and Calcium on Post Harvest Fruit Calcium Content and Fruit Yield 759 Plate 1 : Microtome. 2905 percent CaCl, b) Control study the calcium content of bhendi fruits increased significantly when the plants were sprayed with 0.5 per cent CaCl, at the preharvest stage. The data are in conformity with the findings of Sams and Conway (1993). ‘The calcium enrichment of the plants minimizes the rate of respiration, rotting incidence in vegetables, which assists in the maintenance of firmness of the produce. These processes further help in reducing the fruit cracking in vegetable (Subbiah and Rani Perumal, 1994). A microtome study was undertaken to explicitly demonstrate the role of calcium in cell wall thickening. Inthe plantcell wall, calcium gets accumulated as calcium, peetate in the middle lamella and thickness of this layer can be associated with the free calcium in the cytosol. The dissolved calcium migrates towards the cell wall and form pectic complexes. This phenomenon assists in conservation of moisture in the cell and turgidity. In the present study the microtome experimentation has indicated that the calcium treated fruits had a thickened cell wall exhibited as a black layer around the plant cell. ‘The untreated fruits had a thin (or) the absence of black layer around the cell. This signifies the importance of calcium in cell wall thickening which contributes for the maintenance of moisture and turgidity in the CaCI2 sprayed fruits. The data are in agreement with findings of Venter and Williers (1986) who have shown a close association between calcium concentration in the growth medium and thickening of cell wall in potato tuber. Our study strongly support that calcium spray at 0.5 per cent at the preharvest stage enriches with the plant with calcium which contribute for the extended shelf life of treated fruits. Conclusion The over all results has demonstrated that optimal concentration of either 0.5 per cent CaCl, (or) 100 ppm GA, modified the physiology of the plant in such way that the fruits harvested from the treated plot maintained the fruit calcium level and produced higher fruit yield than control plot. These mechanisms collectively assist in reducing the postharvest losses of bhendi fruit. However, meticulous decision has to be made to fix the concentrations of the preharvest foliar spray as exceeding concentrations may cause deleterious effect in the plant. References Johanson, D. P. (1960). Jn: Plant micro technique. Mc Graw Hill Book Co. Inc., New York. Rao, V.K. and S, Ranganath (1988). Or 18@): 75. Ray, S. K. D. (2002). Preharvest application of calcium compounds on storage behaviour of tomato cultivars (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.). J. of Interacademicia, (63): 290-295. ‘Sams, E. and 8. Conway (1993). Postharvest calcium infiltration improves fresh and processing quality of apples. Acta Hort, 326 : 123-129, Singh, P,,R. D. Tripathi and H.N. Singh (1974), Effect of age of picking on the chemical composition of the fruits of okra Indian J. Agri. Sci, 74: 486-491. Subbiah, K. (1994). Firmness index of tomato as influenced by added N, K, and CaCl, sprays. Madras Agri. J.,81(1):32- 3. ‘Subbiah, K. and Rani Perumal (1994). Studies on the effect of 'N,Kand CaCl on fruit cracking, skin thickness and density oftomato. Madras Agri. J., 81(3) : 138-140. ‘Venter, W. and D. T. de Williers (1986). The influence of caleium con the quality and keeping quality of potatoes: The effect, con cell walls. Acta Hort,, 194: 167-192. Vijay Kumar and N. Ray (2000). Effect of plant growth regulators ‘on cauliflower cv. Pant Subhra. Orissa J. Hort.,28(1): 65- 6. exports. Food Digest,