Peculiarities of tomatillo (Physalis philadelphica) field production in Ukraine with the use of different elements of technology

Abstract

Tomatillo is a fairly common plant in South America but is rare for the conditions of the European continent. Therefore, in Ukraine there are no recommendations for its cultivation in specialized vegetable farms. Such recommendations should take into account the biological characteristics of the plant and the application of new elements of technology for plant productivity. The article is devoted to the study of the influence of the main elements of the technology of growing tomatillo for open ground conditions. The aim of the research was to find and optimize such elements in the open ground. To achieve this goal, the tasks solved were selection of high-yielding varieties, identification of the most effective factors for pre-sowing seed treatment and the term of planting seedlings is substantiated. This research was conducted during 2016 to 2018 on the research fields of Vinnytsia National Agrarian University (Central part of Ukraine) on gray-podzolic soils. The experimental varieties of tomatillo were divided into two groups (short and tall) according to plant height. Three varieties viz., Ananasovyi, Jemovyi and Kondyter were in the first group with a height of 80.1 to 81.4 cm and the second group included two varieties viz., Marmeladnyi and Korolyok. The varieties of foreign selection including Ananasovyi and Korolyok and, a domestic variety Likhtaryk were characterized by higher yields (30.6 to 32.0 t/ha). By studying the effect of pre-sowing seed treatment with heating the seeds at 40°C for 4 hrs or seed treatment with a magnetic field of 50 E for 12 hrs or Baikal EM-1 solution at a dose of 1.0 l/tonne provides an increase in total yield of tomatillo to 33.0 t/ha. When studying the impact of seedlings planting in the open ground, it was found that planting of seedlings was done in the third week of April or first week of May with a seedling age of 60 days under temporary film shelters. The varieties Likhtaryk and Ananasovyi were characterized by early budding in 47-48 days, flowering in 56-57 days, fruit tying in 69-70 days and fruiting in 101days. These varieties form a higher fruit yield of 33.4 t/ha. The biochemical composition determined a higher content of dry matter, protein and ash in the fruits of the variety Korolyok, with an index of 10.7, 1.6 and 1.0 %, respectively. These studies did not research the impact of tillage, pest control to obtain quality and environmentally friendly products and methods of harvesting, therefore, there is a need to further improve the technology of growing tomatillo in the open ground of Ukraine.