Department of Land Management, University Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
* Present address: Principal Scientific Officer, Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture, Mymensingh 2200, Bangladesh.
A field experiment was carried out to investigate the effect of Ca on growth, yield and quality of pineapple cv. Gandul in peat soil. Plant height and leaf number increased significantly with the advancement of plant age but did not have any measurable difference with the rates of Ca. The D-leaf length, area and dry weight did not change significantly with Ca application but differed significantly with plant age. Calcium concentration in leaves varied significantly with both Ca rates and plant age. The highest concentration was recorded with the application of 32 kg CaO/ha 3 months after planting. Although the application of Ca had no significant effect on fruit length, diameter and fruit core diameter, the mean fruit weight responded quadratically with increased Ca application. Calcium rates exceeding 32 kg CaO/ha had depressed the fruit weight. The application of Ca did not bring about any significant change in fruit sugar and fruit acidity in pineapple
