Enhancing Nut Quality Parameters and Sensory Profiles in Three Almond Cultivars by Different Irrigation Regimes

The climate change is already affecting many agricultural systems and human environments, and the implementation of adaptation strategies, especially those related to irrigated agriculture in semiarid regions, is urgent. In this regard, deep knowledge about the effects that irrigation has on the food quality parameters will allow us to estimate the potential benefits of deficit irrigation (DI) strategies. This work presents the effects on the quality parameters of three almond cultivars (Marta, Guara, and Lauranne) subjected to three irrigation doses: (i) full-irrigated treatment (F_I) at 100% crop evapotranspiration (ET_C), (ii) an overirrigated treatment at 150% ET_C (150% ET_C), and (iii) regulated deficit irrigation (RDI₆₅) treatment, in which irrigation was done as in F_I, expect during the kernel-filling period when this treatment received 65% ET_C. According to experimental findings, the cultivar most sensitive to water stress was Marta, having the most significant improvements for RDI₆₅. In general, the effects of the irrigation dose on the morphological and physicochemical parameters were not huge but some improvements were observed in key parameters such as the color and contents of specific sugars, organic acids, and unsaturated fatty acids. Thus, it can be concluded that the irrigation dose did not drastically affect the fruit almond quality, although it is possible to improve several key parameters when a moderate RDI strategy is applied.