Abstract
Two field experiments were conducted to study fruit yield and physiological responses of field grown tomato. The first experiment was conducted with container grown during rainy season by combining three factors namely, two levels of N (0 and 25 kg N ha-1), and two levels of P (0 and 23 kg P ha-1) fertilizers and with six locally available media mix ratios (MR). The experiment was laid down on CRBD in a factorial arrangement and replicated three times. The second experiment was conducted under drip irrigation during hot dry season with three levels of daily irrigation applications: full irrigation, 80% and 60% of daily ETc irrigations. Data on marketable, unmarketable and total fruit yield were recorded and some physiological responses: quantum yield, leaf chlorophyll content and fluorescence, and stomatal conductance were assessed from sample plant leaves using various sensors. The results of container grown experiment indicated that use of combinations of starter N and MR showed a significant effect (P<0.05) on the marketable fruit yield, similarly use of media mixtures had highly significant (P<0.01) influence on the unmarketable fruit yield and finally use of media mix ratio showed a highly significant effect (P<0.01) on the total fruit yield of container grown tomato. MR3 yielded the highest total fruit yield while MR6 gave the lowest total fruit yield. Application of starter N, P or media mix did not bring any combined effect (P<0.01) on the leaf chlorophyll content. However, application of starter N caused a highly significant (P<0.01) effect on leaf quantum yield. The results of drip irrigated experiment indicated that use of various irrigation depth brought a significant (P<0.01) effect on the marketable yield of tomato. The highest fruit yield was recorded in response to full irrigation, while the lowest marketable fruit yield was recorded from 60% of full irrigation. Irrigation depth significantly (P<0.01) affected the tomato leaf chlorophyll content. The highest irrigation level increased leaf chlorophyll content and lowest irrigation depth reduced leaf chlorophyll content. Irrigation depth brought significant (P<0.01) effect on the stomatal conductance as irrigation depth decreased, leaf stomatal conductance was highly reduced. Measuring quantum yield, leaf chlorophyll content, and fluorescence and stomatal conductance of tomato plant there is indicated direct relation with yield performance that would give instant improvement of management practices of the crop. Thus further research is required to fine tune and use of this physiological response with the crop yield.
Highlights
Tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum M.) is grown under various production conditions such as under furrow irrigated and under rainfed in open field, on containers of variable sizes and media mixes in home gardens, under drip irrigated throughout the year in Ethiopia [1]
Plant physiological parameters such as leaf fluorescence, leaf quantum yield, leaf chlorophyll contents and stomatal conductance are among indexes that would provide indirect estimation of plant growth, development and yield [4,5,6]
Two experiments were conducted at Melkassa Agricultural Research Centre; Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia, the first experiment was with container grown tomato conducted during rainy season and the second experiment was with drip irrigated tomato during the hotdry season
Summary
Tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum M.) is grown under various production conditions such as under furrow irrigated and under rainfed in open field, on containers of variable sizes and media mixes in home gardens, under drip irrigated throughout the year in Ethiopia [1]. All smallholder growers in the Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia cultivate tomato using furrow irrigation in open field, where as commercial and semi-commercial growers cultivate in the protected structures [2,3]. The majority of tomato production in the country comes from furrow irrigated open field cultivated almost throughout the year except during the rainy season the production is lower due to diseases pressure. Excited chlorophyll dissipates the absorbed light energy by driving photosynthesis (photochemical energy conversion), as heat in non-photochemical quenching or by emission as fluorescence radiation. As these processes are complementary processes analysis of chlorophyll fluorescence is an important tool in plant research with wide spectra of applications [4]
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