THE EFFECT OF HARVEST DATE ON THE YIELD OF PROCESSING TOMATOES

At the Sixth Processing Tomato Symposium we demonstrated that in a humid environment the relationship between harvest time and red ripe yield followed a bell shaped function when the crop was destructively harvested (to simulate mechanical harvesting).
We postulated that all field trials should involve a minimum of five (and preferably seven) destructive harvests at weekly intervals over the fruit-ripening period to ensure an accurate estimation of optimum harvest date and red ripe yield.
This concept came into considerable criticism from researchers in the traditional (low humidity) processing tomato production areas, who argued that under their conditions fruit losses were not significant, and that there was considerable flexibility in harvest date, without any yield reduction.
To test under nonhumid conditions two cultivars of processing tomatoes were grown in a greenhouse (functioning solely as a rain shelter).
These results support our earlier conclusions, and emphasize the need to harvest on a number of occasions if true comparisons are to be obtained in cultivar or other field studies.

VII International Symposium on the Processing Tomato

M.A. Nichols, K.J. Fisher, P. Johnstone

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2001.542.47