Reduction of blossom-end rot rate of tomato fruits by amendment of the rhizosphere using fertigation
2001
Nakano, A. (National Research Inst. of Vegetables, Ornamental Plants and Tea, Ano, Mie (Japan)) | Uehara, Y. | Yamauchi, A.
The occurrence of blossom-end rot (BER) in tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. var. Saturn) was reduced using an inorganic or organic fertigation method. In the conventional basal dressing method, calcium content of the fruit was decreased in spite of sufficient calcium content in soil, xylem sap and leaf parts. The occurrence of BER had negative correlation with bleeding rate, hence bleeding rate, which is an index integrating various factors such as rhizosphere condition, root length and root activity, might be used as an indicator of the occurrence of BER. Soil EC values affected bleeding rate more heavily than soil compaction and soil water content did. The roots of plants grown with the fertigation method tended to be confined to the dripped soil parts, which reduces soil chemical stress, and calcium uptake driven by water flux was increased. In particular the supply of calcium in the period of fruit enlargement - at night -met the demand in inorganic and organic fertigation with a higher bleeding rate than for the basal dressing method, which led to a reduction in the occurrence of BER in tomato fruits.
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