Abstract: In this study, the effects of different fertilizer treatments during growth period on storage quality of Dongzao jujube were investigated. Three kinds of fertilizers (amino acid fertilizer, mineral fertilizer and rare earth fertilizer) were used to treat Dongzao jujube during the development periods from blooms to young fruits. Dongzao jujube trees submitted to normal management were used as the control. All fruits were harvested after 110 days of blooms and the samples were analyzed at six different stages during 105 days of storage. The results showed that the mature degree and the total sugar content of treated fruits were higher than those of the control. During storage, all treated fruits exhibited an earlier stage for turning red, weak and rot than that of the control fruits. A significant increase of total sugar content in amino acid fertilizer treated fruits during the whole storage period was observed, followed by the treatment of mineral fertilizer, rare earth fertilizer and the control. Mineral fertilizer could obviously increase the content of vitamin C during storage, but did not result in a significant difference of total acid content and fruit firmness. Therefore, all fertilizer treatments could increase fruit quality of Dongzao jujube in a certain extent, and also result in negative impact during storage.

Key words: Dongzao jujube, amino acid fertilizer, mineral fertilizer, rare earth fertilizer, storage quality