Preliminary trials of the application of antitranspirants under field conditions to vines and bananas

During 3 years of field trials, antitranspirant treatment of irrigated late season Muscat Hamburg vines caused a 2-3 week delay in the ripening of the grapes. It is suggested that this was due to the improved water balance of the plants. Under Israeli conditions, the staggering of the harvest and the higher prices obtained at the end of the season made this treatment highly profitable. Under non-irrigated conditions, the yields of treated vines were 14-5% higher than those of the controls. During seven irrigation cycles, extraction of water from the soil by anti- transpirant-treated banana plants was 21-44% less than that of untreated plants. There was no significant effect of the treatment on the growth or yield. The results on water extraction, although statistically significant, were obtained during one season only and from an experiment on a very small scale.