Effect of shading on plant development, yield and fruit quality of sweet pepper grown under conditions of high temperature and radlation

Abstract

The effect of different levels of shading of sweet pepper under high solar radiation (> 600 cal cm −2day −1) at 2 different spacings during the summer months in the northwestern Negev desert of Israel (31°N) was investigated. When light intensity was reduced, plant height, number of nodes and leaf size increased. However, shading inhibited the development of lateral shoots on the main stem of the plant below the first terminal flower. The changes in plant development due to shading affected fruit set, number of fruits per plant, fruit location on the plant, fruit development and yield. The lateral shoots which developed under high light intensity provided 25% of the total yield, whereas only a few fruits were picked from the lateral shoots of plants under low light intensity. The lowest number of fruits per plant was obtained under 47% shading at 5 plants m −2 density, under 47 and 26% shading at 6.7 plants m −2 density. Under shading, individual fruits were larger and had a thicker pericarp. Shading reduced sun-scald damage of the fruits from 36% in full sunlight to 3–4% under 26 and 47% shading. The highest yield of high-quality fruits was obtained with 12–26% shade.