Crop rotation affects the yield and nitrogen fertilization response in processing tomatoes

Abstract

The objective of this 4 year study was to determine the effects of one or two cycles of several short-term crop rotations and N rates on the yield, fruit quality, and N fertilizer response in processing tomatoes ( Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) for southern Ontario, Canada. The tomato based rotations included continuous tomato monoculture, and 2 and 3 year rotations involving alfalfa, soybeans, rye, and winter wheat underseeded with red clover. Nitrogen rates for tomatoes ranged from 0 to 135 kg N ha −1. The study was conducted at Leamington and Dresden, Ontario with different cultivars used at each location. Marketable tomato yield was affected by the rotation, but pH, soluble solids, and fruit color were not. Nitrogen fertilization significantly influenced fruit yield at both locations with both linear and quadratic effects important. Fruit color at Dresden, but not at Leamington, depended on the N rate. Yields increased at Dresden from 53 to 64% over continuous tomato monoculture at the highest N rates for the alfalfa, alfalfa, tomato and soybean, winter wheat, tomato rotations; rotation effects at the highest N rate were absent at Leamington. The yield response of plants in several rotations to increasing N differed significantly from plants in continuous monoculture. The optimal N rate for yields in our study varied from 90 to 135 kg ha −1 and was affected by a rotation × nitrogen rate interaction and the production environment/tomato cultivar used. Maximum yields in continuous tomato monoculture was achieved with 135 (51.4 t ha −1) and 90 (51.5 t ha −1) kg N ha −1 at Leamington and Dresden, respectively.