Efficiency of 3 single-harvest tests for evaluation of yield in pickling cucumber

Abstract

Three rapid tests for measuring yield (small plots harvested once-over, and single plants harvested at the green and at the mature fruit stage) of pickling cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) were evaluated for efficiency compared with the standard multiple-harvest trial with 2 or 3 replications and large plots. Fifteen genotypes were tested in 1981 and 18 in 1982 to determine the correlation among the 4 methods. In 1981, single plants were tested at 4 densities to evaluate the effect of using spaced or crowded plantings in selecting for yield. The spaced and crowded plantings were less efficient than the standard density, but none of the single-plant tests run in 1981 or 1982 were more efficient than the standard method in measuring yield. The most efficient method was 1, 2 or 3 replications of small-plots harvested once-over at green fruit stage, with 160% more gain from selection expected than for the replicated, multiple-harvest trial.