Influence of Irrigation Water Acidity, Chemical Fertilizer and Propagation Method on the Contents of Nutrient Elements of Strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa Duch.) cv. Festival

Abstract

The experiment was conducted to study the effect of the reproduction method and acidity of irrigation water and chemical fertilization plus their interactions on the strawberry fruit of the cv. Festival indicators. The percentage of total soluble solids, total acidity, total sugars, ascorbic acid content, and nitrate content were estimated. Results showed the superiority of the method of propagation using the plant tissue culture technique. The ascorbic acid content was 32.73 mg.100 g^-1 fresh mass for the method of propagation by runners. Also, the water treatment with pH 5.5 was superior for the total sugars content in fruits 6.72% and the content of ascorbic acid 32.71 to 73 mg.100 g^-1 fresh mass compared to the control treatment. As for the triple interaction, the method of propagation with runners and pH water 5.5 and the fertilizer recommendation of macro-elements outperformed in the percentage of  T.S.S and carbohydrate content in the strawberry fruits reached 11.70% and 10.41%, respectively, but the total acidity decreased to 2.37 mg.g^-1 for the same combination. In contrast, the highest content of ascorbic acid in fruits 44.81 mg.100 g ^-1 of fresh mass was recorded by using the propagation method of tissue culture technique. Moreover, the lowest nitrate content was 11.19 mg. 100 g ^-1 dry mass when using the propagation method of runners and pH of irrigation water at 6.5 plus the fertilizer recommendation of macro-elements.