Abstract
ABSTRACT. The aim of the study was to determine the yield and quality parameters of organic cherry tomatoes cultivated by intercropping with green manure in two successive years. The experimental design was a randomized block with eight treatments and five replicates as follows: two controls with single cherry tomato crop, one with straw addition and the other without corn straw as a cover crop; cherry tomato intercropped with jack bean (Canavalia ensiformis DC); tomato intercropped with white lupine (Lupinus albus L.); tomato intercropped with sun hemp (Crotalaria juncea L.); tomato intercropped with velvet bean-dwarf [Mucuna deeringiana (Bort) Merrill]; tomato intercropped with mung bean [Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek]; and tomato intercropped with cowpea [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.]. All the treatments with green manure received corn straw as mulch. The treatment group with cowpea had a lower number and weight of commercial fruits compared to the velvet bean-dwarf and jack bean treatments. The number and weight of the commercial fruits were lower in the second year. The fruits in the first year exhibited a higher average weight, a lower nutrient content and a lower soluble solids total TSS/AT ratio than the second year fruits. Green manures did not negatively affect the quality or nutrient content of the tomato fruit.
Highlights
Concern about food insecurity and the environmental impact of the production of foods has led consumers to seek food grown via alternative systems over those grown conventionally (Rembiałkowska, 2007; Hidalgo-Baz, Martos-Partal, & González-Benito, 2017)
Organic agriculture has grown by 75% in the last 15 years, reaching a planted area of 43.7 million hectares in 142 countries in 2014; of this total area, 0.5% is intended for the production of vegetables (Lernoud & Willer, 2016)
The treatments were as follows: two controls with a single cherry tomato crop, one with added straw and the other without added straw in addition as a cover crop; cherry tomato intercropped with jack bean (Canavalia ensiformis DC); cherry tomato intercropped with lupine (Lupinus albus L.); cherry tomato intercropped with sun hemp (Crotalaria juncea L.); cherry tomato intercropped with velvet bean-dwarf [Mucuna deeringiana (Bort) Merrill]; cherry tomato intercropped with mung bean [Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek]; and cherry tomato intercropped with cowpea beans [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.]
Summary
Concern about food insecurity and the environmental impact of the production of foods has led consumers to seek food grown via alternative systems over those grown conventionally (Rembiałkowska, 2007; Hidalgo-Baz, Martos-Partal, & González-Benito, 2017). Organic agriculture has grown by 75% in the last 15 years, reaching a planted area of 43.7 million hectares in 142 countries in 2014; of this total area, 0.5% is intended for the production of vegetables (legumes, hardwoods and fruit) (Lernoud & Willer, 2016). Tomato is one of the most produced vegetables in Brazil, with the 2015 harvest reaching a production of. The commercialization of tomatoes has a better economic return due to demand and the higher price compared to other vegetables, reducing the external input cost (Jouzi et al, 2017). One study has shown that organic fruits have a higher content of vitamins, phenolics and antioxidants than conventionally produced fruits (Mditshwa, Magwaza, Tesfay, & Mbili, 2017)
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