Effect of gibberellins on the yield of jalapeño pepper (Capsicum annuum L.)

Abstract

The pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) is an important crop in Mexico due to its growing demand in recent years. Therefore, alternatives should be sought to increase their production, one of them is the use of growth regulators, of which gibberellins are important growth regulators involved in mooring and fruit development, flowering, cell elongation and expansion in plants. In order to evaluate the effect of the application of gibberellins (GA3) on the yield of jalapeño pepper produced in greenhouse, the present investigation was carried out in two successive experiments. In experiment 1, five doses of gibberellins were evaluated: 0 (control), 10, 30, 50 and 500 mg L-1 that were sprayed in one and two applications. The fertilization in this experiment was with nutritive solution (N, P, K and microelements). In experiment 2 the same doses of GA3 were evaluated, also in one and two applications, but the fertilization was carried out with calcium nitrate and potassium nitrate soluble in water. In experiment 1, no increase in yield was detected. In contrast, in experiment 2, the 10 mg L-1 dose of GA3 in combination with the fertilization with calcium nitrate and potassium nitrate increased the yield of jalapeño pepper. The results show gibberellins as key elements combined with low fertilization to increase pepper production.