Evaluation of Yield and Quality of Barhee Date Palm Cultivar Under Different Potassium Sources and Rates

Abstract

The date palm variety Barhee, grown in a private orchard at El-Fouad for Agricultural Investments, Abo Hammad district, Sharkia Governorate, Egypt, was the subject of this experiment conducted in the 2022 and 2023 growing seasons. The 15-year-old, labeled date palms underwent the usual agricultural procedures of watering, pollination, pruning, and soil replenishment with both organic and mineral fertilizers. The study looked at how the chemical composition of leaves and dates was affected by spraying potassium sources (potassium phosphate, potassium thiosulfate, potassium nitrate, and potassium citrate) at different rates (1.00, 1.50, and 2.00%), each rate combined with Zn at 0.5% + B at 0.5% beside control. The results showed that these treatments showed the highest values of bunch length and number of strands per bunch. Both treatments decreased the Barhee date palm's biannual bearing phenomenon. The highest values of reducing, non-reducing and total sugars percentages obtained when Barhee date palms were sprayed with potassium nitrate at 2.0 % + Zn at 0.5% + B at 0.5% or mono potassium phosphate at 1.5 %. Using mono potassium phosphate at 2.0 % gave the highest values of vitamin C content and acidity %, whenever, the lowest total tannins percentage was noticed in dates of control potassium nitrate or potassium citrate each at 1.0 % compared to the other treatments under study.

Conclusion: The yield components and fruit chemical characteristics of the "Barhee" date palm cultivated under Sharkia conditions are improved by spraying potassium nitrate at 2.0% in combination with Zn at 0.5% and B at 0.5%.