Effect of diurnal temperature variation on early yield and fruit size of greenhouse tomato
1988
Gent, M.P.N.
Tomato plants were grown in a greenhouse in the northeast U.S. at a mean temperature of 17 degrees celsius. Early yield and fruit size were compared for plants grown under a 3 or a 9 degrees celsius day-night temperature variation. Plants were grown in ambient or in carbon dioxide enriched air and in plantings that produced ripe fruit in winter and spring. The 9 degrees celsius diurnal temperature variation accelerated fruit growth and ripening, resulting in greater early yield. It did not inhibit fruit set or result in a greater percentage of misshapen fruit. In spring, carbon dioxide enrichment increased fruit growth more under the 9 than 3 degrees celsius diurnal temperature variation. Under the 9 degrees celsius diurnal temperature variation, carbon dioxide enrichment prevented the reduction in fruit weight seen under ambient carbon dioxide. The weight per fruit and percentage of large fruit were lower in spring than winter, and due to their effect on fruit size, the growth regimens affected the yield of high quality fruit more in spring than in winter.
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