The present investigation was carried out at Hi-Tech Unit, Department of Horticulture, Rajasthan College of Agriculture, MPUAT, Udaipur. The fourteen treatments for the tomato crop were evaluated with three replications under randomized block design.
The results exhibit the significant effect of various treatments on growth, yield quality of tomato and their residual effect on different soil properties. Maximum number of clusters per plant (6.86), number of flowers per cluster (8.88), number of fruits per plant (27.73), fruit weight(83.47 g), fruit volume (77.28 cc), specific gravity (1.04 g/cc), fruit length (6.51 cm), yield per plant (1030.26 g), yield per plot (30.74 kg) and yield per ha (307.43 q/ha) was recorded with treatment T9 (RDF + 25 t ha-1 FYM + 100 kg ha-1Silicon through Diatomaceous earth). Maximum net return of 256182 found in T9 and maximum B: C Ratio (3. 88) was recorded with T10.
The study suggests using treatment T9 for improved tomato yield and exploring silicon supplementation in cultivation practices. It emphasizes continuous soil monitoring and precision agriculture for sustainable production. Future research should focus on cost-effective methods, genetic studies and collaboration.
Author(s) Details:
Pavan Kumar Sharma
Department of Vegetable Science, SKRAU, Bikaner, India.
Pinki Yadav
Department of Horticulture, RCA, MPAUT, Udaipur, India.
Jitendra Gurjar
Department of Horticulture, SKRAU, Bikaner, India.
Rohitash Kumar
Department of Vegetable Science, SKRAU, Bikaner, India.
Also See : A Review of Cutting-edge Biotechnological Solutions for Next-generation Farming
Recent Global Research Developments in Enhancing Tomato Nutrition and Flavor with Silicon
Silicon Improves Cherry Tomato Growth and Fruit Quality:
A study investigated the effects of Si application on cherry tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum var. cerasiforme) under nitrogen (N) imbalance.
Si enhanced dry matter accumulation, photosynthesis, and leaf N metabolic enzyme activities.
Fruit quality improved, with increased vitamin C content and firmness under both low and high N conditions [1] .
Optimal Si Concentrations Enhance Tomato Nutritional and Flavor Qualities:
Exogenous Si applied at appropriate concentrations improved tomato nutritional and flavor qualities.
Components like chlorogenic acid and rutin increased significantly with Si treatment [2,3].
Si’s Role in Stress Mitigation:
While Si is known to mitigate biotic and abiotic stresses in various plants, its effects on tomato quality under normal growth conditions remain an area of interest [3].
References
- Lei, F., Pan, X., Lin, H. et al. Silicon Improves the Plant Growth and Fruit Quality of Cherry Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum var. cerasiforme) under Nitrogen Imbalance by Modulating Nitrogen Assimilation and Photosynthesis. J Soil Sci Plant Nutr (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42729-024-01902-x
- Yang, Y., Zhu, W., Jin, N., Liu, W., Lie, Y., Wang, L., … & Lyu, J. (2024). Exogenous silicon applied at appropriate concentrations is effective at improving tomato nutritional and flavor qualities. Food Chemistry: X, 22, 101306.
- Yang Y, Zhu W, Jin N, et al. Exogenous silicon applied at appropriate concentrations is effective at improving tomato nutritional and flavor qualities. Food Chemistry: X. 2024 Jun;22:101306. DOI: 10.1016/j.fochx.2024.101306. PMID: 38550882; PMCID: PMC10972818.
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