Effect of foliar nutrition of calcium and sulphur on pulp quality attributes and shelf-life of papaya (Carica papaya L.)

Abstract

The present experiment involved the foliar application of calcium (Ca (NO3)2) and sulphur (K2SO4) independently or in combination at two levels (0.25 % and 0.5 %) with micronutrients (zinc sulphate @ 0.5% and boric acid @ 0.1%)) at 3rd, 5th and 7th months after planting along with the recommended dose of fertilizers (50:50:50 g NPK /plant @ bimonthly interval). The present study revealed that the foliar application of both calcium (0.5%), sulphur (0.5%) and micronutrients (zinc sulphate @ 0.5% and boric acid @ 0.1%) along with the recommended dose of fertilizers (T7) increased the lycopene (3.36 mg/100g) and β-carotene content (2.36 mg/100g) of the papaya fruits. Shelf-life of the fruits was extended upto 6.20 days in T3 (0.5 % Ca (NO3)2) followed by 6.00 days in T7 (0.5 % Ca (NO3)2+ 0.5 % K2SO4). The treatment, T7 (0.5 % Ca (NO3)2+ 0.5 % K2SO4) recorded low PLW (7.28 %) at the end of 5th day. Based on the overall results, the foliar application the secondary nutrients (Ca (NO3)2 (0.5 %) + K2SO4 (0.5) %) and micronutrients (zinc sulphate (0.5%) + boric acid (0.1%) along with recommended dose of NPK at 50g at bimonthly intervals improved the quality attributes and shelf-life of papaya.