The increase in temperature and the decrease in water resources predicted by
climate change models will directly influence the productivity, ripening rate, and
organoleptic quality of fruit crops. Strawberry is an important crop in Spain, Spain being
the sixth largest strawberry producer in the world. This crop is particularly susceptible
to drought stress; climate change will significantly challenge strawberry production in
the short and medium term. This assay aimed to characterize the performance of
different strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa, Duch.) varieties under water restriction
conditions. For this purpose, potted plants of the cultivars Chandler, Camarosa, Amiga,
and Rociera were grown in a greenhouse during the production months under sufficient
(3.3 L·m-2·day-1) or deficient (0.5 L·m-2·day-1) irrigation conditions. Vegetative growth of
plants under stress conditions decreased significantly in the same proportion in all lines
tested. However, water use efficiency, estimated as photosynthetic rate/transpiration
rate, increased in water-stressed plants of cv. Chandler. Under drought conditions, a
significant decrease in fruit weight and size was observed in all genotypes and in the
number of fruits produced per plant. The cv. Rociera showed the most significant
decrease in fruit yield, 90%, despite this genotype being the most productive in control
conditions. Regarding fruit quality, no differences were observed in firmness, except in
the Rociera genotype, which produced firmer fruits under stress conditions. Likewise,
water restriction did not affect the concentration of soluble solids except in cv. Amiga,
in which this variable was significantly increased. As for color, there were no significant
changes in the parameters measured. Experiments are underway to determine
transcriptomic differences among the different genotypes subjected to drought
conditions.
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