Proper period and temperature for transportation of cucumber and tomato transplants

Abstract

With an increased demand for high-quality transplants, vegetable growers have begun to purchase grafted transplants from specialized propagators. These are often shipped over long distances, but improper transport conditions can deteriorate transplant quality. To determine the appropriate period and temperature for transporting grafted transplants, we stored cucumber and tomato transplants in darkness at 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 o C for 3, 6, 9, 12, and 15 days, and subsequently cultivated these in a greenhouse for 15 days. We investigated the changes in plant height and SPAD value during storage, as well as the early growth of the stored transplants during subsequent cultivation. Increasing temperature during storage promoted stem elongation in both transplant species, with cucumber transplants showing greater stem elongation than tomato transplants. SPAD values of cucumber and tomato transplants tended to decrease with increasing storage temperature, declining even further with extended storage period. The cucumber transplants stored for 3 days and the tomato transplants stored for 6 days, showed no decrease in percent survival and no delay of growth after transplanting compared with non-stored transplants. From these results, we suggest that the appropriate temperature for transporting cucumber and tomato transplants in darkness is 6°C, and the appropriate period of storage in darkness are 3 and 6 days for cucumber and tomato transplants, respectively. Controlling transportation conditions can avoid the deterioration of transplant quality during transport and the delay of early growth after transplanting.