Shading effects on fruit quality of grafted tomatoes under salinity stress

The objective of this study was to show the effects of shading by colour nets on fruit quality parameters from grafted tomato plants grown under moderate saline stress.
Tomato plants ‘Paronset F₁’ grafted onto He-Man rootstock, covered by different colour shade nets (pearl, blue and red with 40% shade level), were irrigated with non-salty water (1.7 dS m^‑1) and with moderate salty water (4 dS m^‑1). Un-shaded plants irrigated with non-salty water represented control conditions.
Salt stress at a moderate salinity level (4 dS m^‑1) resulted in increase of lycopene and ascorbic acid content and slightly in total phenols content as health-promoting substances in all shading nets (blue, red and pearl), thus emphasizing the possibility of reducing the toxic effects of salt stress.
Fructose and glucose content in tomato fruits increased under shading but only in non-salinity condition.
These results show that shading of grafting tomato under moderate salinity stress has positive influences on the fruit quality.

IX International Symposium on Seed, Transplant and Stand Establishment of Horticultural Crops and III International Symposium on Vegetable Grafting

Lj. Šunić, Z.S. Ilić, L. Milenković, J. Mastilović, Ž. Kevrešan, A. Bajić

Solanum lycopesicum L., rootstock, salty water, colour nets, fruit quality traits

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2026.1453.24