Articles
1.1 MOISTURE STRESS AS IT AFFECTS YIELDS, SOLUBLE SOLIDS AND VISCOSITY OF TOMATOES – 1989
Moisture stress has an impact on all three.
Moisture stress reduces yield and increases solids.
Up until now, the effect of moisture stress on viscosity has not been well understood.
A new microwave method, developed by the University of California allows a large number of samples to be quickly and inexpensively tested.
Research began in 1988 to bring together an irrigation management system that growers could use to improve fruit quality.
There were three components of the moisture stress research:
- three cultivars;
- two depletion levels, to achieve variable stress levels;
- three irrigation cut-off dates prior to harvest.
All of these areas can easily be managed with today’s technology.
Through a good moisture stress management program, one can maintain yield, while increasing solids without decreasing viscosity.
Energy costs have escalated over the past few years making it necessary to intensify efforts to reduce processing costs.
In California, processors have records of cultivars and percent solids for every load of tomatoes a grower delivers.
Computers provide processors with information on individual grower performance.
This enables the processor to eliminate poor growers.
Growers who survive will need information on management practices to provide the quantity and quality of tomatoes that processors demand.