Articles
EFFECTS OF TRANSPLANT RAISING METHODS AND CULTIVARS ON YIELD AND SOME CHARACTERS OF TOMATO
A trial was conducted to find out the best methods of raising transplants using two cultivars having early and medium maturity to evaluate the possibility of replacing the traditional method of using bare root transplants with better methods of transplant preparation.
Yield of transplants grown in clear polyethylene pots gave the highest yield among sub-plot treatments, followed by transplants grown from 10-cm and 5-cm pots which did not differ significantly, but have a significant difference over the yield of bare root transplants.
There was no significant difference in yield between cultivars, except that Jina VF, a medium maturity cv has a higher yield than Pacesetter 502, an early cv.
Transplants raised in polyethylene pots grew more rapidly and flower ed earlier than the other treatments which is highly significant.
Likewise, plant survival is higher in plants grown in polyethylene pots and differed significantly over the bare root transplants, but not with other treatments.
Overall, higher yield, earlier growth, early flowering and higher plant survival occured in clear polyethylene-pot grown plants, which could be attributed to the higher temperature in the growing medium where it absorbed and retained heat better than in the other containers.
In this regard, we can recommend the use of clear polyethylene pots and in addition, the 10-cm and 5-cm pots over the bare root transplants.