Response of Foliar Fertilization of Micronutrients on Fruit Growth and Yield of Low-chill Peach Cv. SHARBATI

A field experiment was carried out during 2010 and 2011 seasons on seven year old Sharbati cultivar of peach, growing in clay loam soil. The experiment was laid out in randomized block designed to study the effect of foliar spraying of boron, zinc and iron and its combination on fruit growth pattern, yield and yield attributing characters of the low-chill peach. Boric acid (0.1%), zinc sulphate (0.5%) and ferrous sulphate (0.5%) were used as a source of boron, zinc and iron, respectively. All the trees were fertilized with same NPK dose as per recommendation. The spraying was done twice; during last week of February, i.e., after petal fall stage and again at 15 days after the first spraying during both years in three replicates. The result revealed that foliar spraying of peach trees with 0.1 % H3BO3 + 0.5 % ZnSO4, 7H2O + 0.5 % FeSO4, 7H2O was the promising treatment for improvement of fruit growth, fruit length, fruit diameter, fruit volume and firmness of the fruit. This treatment was also found best for maximum fruit retention, average fruit weight as well as the fruit yield.