Articles
PREDICTING THE WEEKLY YIELD FLUCTUATIONS OF GREENHOUSE BELL PEPPER
Article number
817_27
Pages
261 – 268
Language
English
Abstract
The production of bell pepper is characterised by large fluctuations in the number of fruits to pick over time.
This phenomenon is called flushing: weeks with high yields are alternated by weeks with low yields and this is a reflection of the fluctuating pattern of fruit set.
There is a need to have a good insight into the expected production highs and lows, to establish better prices with retailers and to guarantee the demand when bell peppers are sold in advance for a negotiated price, to optimise packing logistics and to ensure additional labour is available when needed.
A method was developed which predicts the weekly production of greenhouse bell pepper.
It is based on the recording of fruit set and the prediction of the number of days from fruit set to harvest.
The maturation of bell pepper fruits of several cultivars of red, yellow and green bell pepper was followed in 2005 and 2006. During the entire season the date of fruit set and harvest of each fruit were monitored to determine the length of the growth period of a fruit.
Temperature had a significant effect on the fruit developmental time.
On average the number of days to harvest decreased with increasing temperature.
At certain periods fruits developed slower when the average fruit load was high but fruit load had not a significant effect for every cultivar.
Regression models were built to predict the number of days to harvest as a linear function of average 24-hour greenhouse temperature during the growth period.
By using these models and the recording of the numbers of fruit set per week, the weekly yield fluctuations were successfully predicted for several cultivars and years.
Since fruit growth takes on average 6 to 8 weeks it is possible to predict the weekly harvest within this time.
This phenomenon is called flushing: weeks with high yields are alternated by weeks with low yields and this is a reflection of the fluctuating pattern of fruit set.
There is a need to have a good insight into the expected production highs and lows, to establish better prices with retailers and to guarantee the demand when bell peppers are sold in advance for a negotiated price, to optimise packing logistics and to ensure additional labour is available when needed.
A method was developed which predicts the weekly production of greenhouse bell pepper.
It is based on the recording of fruit set and the prediction of the number of days from fruit set to harvest.
The maturation of bell pepper fruits of several cultivars of red, yellow and green bell pepper was followed in 2005 and 2006. During the entire season the date of fruit set and harvest of each fruit were monitored to determine the length of the growth period of a fruit.
Temperature had a significant effect on the fruit developmental time.
On average the number of days to harvest decreased with increasing temperature.
At certain periods fruits developed slower when the average fruit load was high but fruit load had not a significant effect for every cultivar.
Regression models were built to predict the number of days to harvest as a linear function of average 24-hour greenhouse temperature during the growth period.
By using these models and the recording of the numbers of fruit set per week, the weekly yield fluctuations were successfully predicted for several cultivars and years.
Since fruit growth takes on average 6 to 8 weeks it is possible to predict the weekly harvest within this time.
Authors
C. Sauviller, W. Baets, B.E. Verlinden, B.M. Nicolaï
Keywords
Capsicum annuum, model, yield prediction, flushing, fruit set, fruit growth
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