Physical and Chemical Attributes and Yield of Sour Passion Fruit Grown under Deficit Irrigation Strategies and Salicylic Acid Application

Abstract

With population growth, increasing agricultural productivity is essential, particularly in semiarid regions, regions experiencing drought problems. Thus, strategies aimed at mitigating the effects of water deficit and increasing water use efficiency become essential for the sustainability of agricultural production. In this context, the objective of present study was to evaluate the effect of salicylic acid application on the attenuation of water deficit on the physical and chemical attributes and yield components of sour passion fruit at different phenological stages. The treatments were arranged in a randomized block design, in a 6 × 2 factorial scheme, consisting of six deficit irrigation strategies based on reference evapotranspiration of crop combined with the presence and absence of salicylic acid (SAL) application, with four replications and one plant per plot in each drainage lysimeter. It was observed that the deleterious effects of water deficit under irrigation with 50% ETr during the flowering stage were mitigated by the application of 1.0 mM salicylic acid, promoting increases in yield–related variables. The application of 1.0 mM salicylic acid increased yield and water use efficiency of sour passion fruit plants under flowering stage. In addition, salicylic acid application increased pH, vitamin C, soluble solids, titratable acidity, the soluble solids to titratable acidity ratio, reducing sugars, flavonoids, anthocyanins, and phenolic compounds.