Response of blueberry photosynthetic physiology to light intensity during different stages of fruit development

Abstract

To investigate the response of blueberry photosynthetic physiology to different light intensities during different stages of fruit development. In this study, four light intensity treatments (25%, 50%, 75% and 100% of full light) were set up to study the change rule of photosynthetic pigment content and photosynthetic characteristics of’O’Neal’ southern highbush blueberry leaves during the white fruiting stage (S1), purple fruiting stage (S2) and blue fruiting stage (S3) under different light intensity environments, and to explore the light demand and light adaptability of blueberry during different developmental stages of the fruit. The results showed that the chlorophyll and carotenoid contents of blueberry leaves showed an increasing trend with decreasing light intensity at all three stages of fruit development. The total chlorophyll content of blueberry leaves at 25% light intensity increased by 76.4% compared with CK during the blue fruiting stage; the maximum net photosynthetic rate (Pmax), light compensation point (LCP), light saturation point (LSP), rate of dark respirations (Rd), inter-cellular CO2 concentration (Ci), stomatal conductance (Gs), transpiration rate (Tr), net photosynthesis rate (Pn), and chlorophyll a/b showed a decreasing trend with decreasing light intensity. The Pn of blueberry leaves was highest under full light conditions at all three stages, and the Pn at 25% light intensity decreased by 68.5% compared with CK during the white fruiting stage Reflecting the fact that blueberries can adapt to low-light environments through increases in chlorophyll and carotenoids, but reduced light intensity significantly inhibited their photosynthesis. The photosynthetic physiology of blueberry showed a consistent pattern at all three stages, but there were some differences in the changes of photosynthetic parameters at different stages. The results of the study can provide theoretical references for the selection of sites and density regulation in blueberry production.