Due to high respiration and ethylene production, tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is highly perishable horticulture produce that deteriorates faster during the post-harvest storage period. Calcium nutrition is important to overcome these losses as it helps in retarding ripening process during storage and improve the post-harvest quality tomatoes. Hence a field experiment was conducted with different calcium sources and levels viz., Calcium sulphate, Calcium Nitrate, Calcium silicate, Poultry manure and Pressmud applied at 0, 20, 40, 60 and 80 kg Ca ha-1. A storage study was conducted in a factorial completely randomized block design (FCRD) to ensure the effective role of calcium in post-harvest quality of hybrid tomato. Tomatoes were analyzed for pH of fruit juice, firmness, titratable acidity, total soluble solids, moisture content and physiological loss at five days intervals upto 15 days. The results revealed thatCalcium sources and levels had highly significant impacts on the quality of tomato fruits. The tomatoes harvested from the plot applied with poultry manure at 80 kg Ca ha-1 retained the highest fruit firmness(3.76 N m-1), moisture content (88.2%) and the lowest weight loss (8.82%) in fruit, highertitratable acidity (0.41%), lesser pH (3.61)andtotal soluble solids (4.23 ˚Brix). Hence the application of poultry manure at 80 kg Ca ha-1was beneficial in improving the quality and extending the storage life of hybrid tomatoes.
Aims: To evaluate the effect of various sources and levels of calcium fertilisation in improving the growth and SPAD index of hybrid tomato at different growth stages. Study Design: Factorial randomized block design (FRBD) with three replications. Place and Duration of Study: A field experiment was conducted in the farmer’s field at Devarayapuram village, Thondamuthur block, Coimbatore from January to April, 2021. Methodology: A field experiment was conducted with hybrid tomato (Solanum lycopersiucm L) Shivam by using various organic and inorganic calcium sources viz., calcium sulphate, calcium nitrate, calcium silicate, poultry manure and pressmud applied at different levels (0, 20, 40, 60, 80 kg Ca ha-1) in a factorial randomized block design with three replications. The growth parameters such as plant height, root length, lateral root length, root volume and SPAD index were recorded as per standard protocols at different plant growth stages. Results: A linear increase in the plant growth, root traits and SPAD index of hybrid tomato was noted by the addition of organic and inorganic sources of calcium and the highest values were observed with the application of 80 kg Ca ha-1. Higher plant height (93.8 cm), root length (16.8 cm), lateral root length (13.3 g cc-1) and SPAD index (62.0) was registered with poultry manure applied at 80 kg Ca ha-1 which was followed by pressmud applied at the same level. Skipping of calcium in the fertiliser schedule registered the lowest growth response of hybrid tomato at all the growth stages. Conclusion: Inorganic Ca fertiliser sources though improved the growth, root traits and SPAD index of hybrid tomato at different growth stages, and it was comparatively lesser than the organic sources such as poultry manure and pressmud as calcium sources. The order of better growth performance was: Poultry manure > Pressmud > Ca silicate > Ca Nitrate > Ca sulphate. The lowest values of all the growth attributes were noted with NPK control. It was concluded that application of poultry manure at 80 kg Ca ha-1 would be effective in improving the growth, root traits and SPAD index of hybrid tomato.
Postharvest quality maintenance of tomatoes is very crucial because of its perishable nature. Calcium, directly involved in the physiological process and enzymatic activities, thereby helps in maintaining the postharvest quality. Increasing calcium concentration reduces respiration and ethylene production in succession; it increases the shelf life and quality of tomatoes. Hence, a field experiment was conducted with different sources and levels of Ca, namely, calcium sulfate, calcium nitrate, calcium silicate, poultry manure, and press mud applied at 0, 20, 40, 60, and 80 kg Ca ha −1 . Ripened tomatoes were harvested from each plot. Eight fruits were selected randomly from every treatment and divided into destructive and nondestructive samples, arranged in a factorial completely randomized block design for conducting a storage study. Shelf life, ascorbic acid, lycopene, beta-carotene, and polygalacturonase were analyzed at a 5-day interval up to 15 days. The results revealed that the effect of calcium sources had significant (p ≤ 0.05) impacts on fruit quality. The tomatoes harvested from poultry manure retained the highest shelf life (15 days) at 80 kg Ca ha −1 and the highest ascorbic acid content (37.5 mg 100 g −1 ) at 60 kg Ca ha −1 . However, the lowest lycopene (2.86 mg 100 g −1 ), beta-carotene (1.81 mg 100 g −1 ), and lesser polygalacturonase activity (1.99 kj m −2 ) were obtained with poultry manure at 80 kg Ca ha −1 . From the results procured in this experiment, it was inferred that the application of poultry manure at 80 kg Ca ha −1 was found to be effective in improving the quality attributes of hybrid tomato as it imparts multiple essential nutrients along with calcium.
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