Can Sustained Deficit Irrigation Save Water and Meet the Quality Characteristics of Mango?
Leontina Lipan,
Aarón A. Carbonell-Pedro,
Belén Cárceles Rodríguez,
Víctor Hugo Durán-Zuazo,
Dionisio Franco Tarifa,
Iván Francisco García-Tejero,
Baltasar Gálvez Ruiz,
Simón Cuadros Tavira,
Raquel Muelas,
Esther Sendra,
Ángel A. Carbonell-Barrachina,
Francisca Hernández
Affiliations
Leontina Lipan
Research Group “Food Quality and Safety”, Centro de Investigación e Innovación Agroalimentaria y Agroambiental (CIAGRO-UMH), Miguel Hernández University, Carretera de Beniel, km 3.2, Orihuela, 03312 Alicante, Spain
Aarón A. Carbonell-Pedro
Research Group “Food Quality and Safety”, Centro de Investigación e Innovación Agroalimentaria y Agroambiental (CIAGRO-UMH), Miguel Hernández University, Carretera de Beniel, km 3.2, Orihuela, 03312 Alicante, Spain
Belén Cárceles Rodríguez
IFAPA Centro “Camino de Purchil”, Camino de Purchil s/n, 18004 Granada, Spain
Víctor Hugo Durán-Zuazo
IFAPA Centro “Camino de Purchil”, Camino de Purchil s/n, 18004 Granada, Spain
Dionisio Franco Tarifa
Agriculture and Environment Area, Experimental Farm “El Zahori”, Excmo. Ayto. de Almuñécar, Plaza de la Constitución 1, Almuñécar, 18690 Granada, Spain
Iván Francisco García-Tejero
IFAPA Centro “Las Torres”, Carretera Sevilla-Alcalá del Río, km 12.2, Alcalá del Río, 41200 Sevilla, Spain
Baltasar Gálvez Ruiz
IFAPA Centro “Camino de Purchil”, Camino de Purchil s/n, 18004 Granada, Spain
Simón Cuadros Tavira
Department of Ingeniería Forestal, Campus de Rabanales, Universidad de Córdoba, E-14071 Córdoba, Spain
Raquel Muelas
Centro de Investigación e Innovación Agroalimentaria y Agroambiental (CIAGRO-UMH), Miguel Hernández University, Carretera de Beniel, km 3.2, Orihuela, 03312 Alicante, Spain
Esther Sendra
Research Group “Food Quality and Safety”, Centro de Investigación e Innovación Agroalimentaria y Agroambiental (CIAGRO-UMH), Miguel Hernández University, Carretera de Beniel, km 3.2, Orihuela, 03312 Alicante, Spain
Ángel A. Carbonell-Barrachina
Research Group “Food Quality and Safety”, Centro de Investigación e Innovación Agroalimentaria y Agroambiental (CIAGRO-UMH), Miguel Hernández University, Carretera de Beniel, km 3.2, Orihuela, 03312 Alicante, Spain
Francisca Hernández
Research Group “Plant Production and Technology”, Centro de Investigación e Innovación Agroalimentaria y Agroambiental (CIAGRO-UMH), Miguel Hernández University, Carretera de Beniel, km 3.2, Orihuela, 03312 Alicante, Spain
Mango is one of the most cultivated tropical fruits worldwide and one of few drought-tolerant plants. Thus, in this study the effect of a sustained deficit irrigation (SDI) strategy on mango yield and quality was assessed with the aim of reducing irrigation water in mango crop. A randomized block design with four treatments was developed: (i) full irrigation (FI), assuring the crop’s water needs, and three levels of SDI receiving 75%, 50%, and 33% of irrigation water (SDI75, SDI50, and SDI33). Yield, morphology, color, titratable acidity (TA), total soluble solids (TSS), organic acids (OA), sugars, minerals, fiber, antioxidant activity (AA), and total phenolic content (TPC) were analyzed. The yield was reduced in SDI conditions (8%, 11%, and 20% for SDI75, SDI50, and SDI33, respectively), but the irrigation water productivity was higher in all SDI regimes. SDI significantly reduced the mango size, with SDI33 generating the smallest mangoes. Peel color significantly changed after 13 days of ripening, with SDI75 being the least ripe. The TA, AA, and citric acid were higher in SDI75, while the TPC and fiber increased in all SDI levels. Consequently, SDI reduced the mango size but increased the functionality of samples, without a severe detrimental effect on the yield.
