Tomato plants are highly sensitive to chilling stress so this experiment was conducted during successive winter seasons of 2020/2021 and
2021/2022 to investigate the possibility of sustaining production and quality of tomato yield under cold conditions by using different types
of mesh cover for low tunnels. Two commercial cultivars, i.e., Super gold F1 and Super streen F1 were used. Seedlings were transplanted
under different types of mesh cover for low tunnels. Three types of mesh cover (63%, 65%, 73%) had done to cover the plants of all tested
seasons compared to open field condition (control "without cover"). Results show that significant differences were observed among the two
hybrid varieties of tomato studied, in terms of their vegetative growth characteristics (plant height, number of branches, number of leaves,
fresh weight, dry weight and leaves area) as well as yield and fruit quality characteristics (Fruit set, total yield, firmness, T.S.S. and
Vit. C. ‘Super gold’ exhibited significantly higher values for these characteristics, compared to ‘Super strain B’. Chilling reduced the
growth parameters (plant height, number of leaves, number of branches, plant fresh weight, plant dry weight) for control plants (without
cover) compared to the coverage treatments (63%, 65%, 73%). Significant highest results in the growth, chemical composition of tomato
leaves as well as yield and fruit quality parameters were obtained with covering tomato plants by white mesh cover 63% flowed by 65% of
treatments which were best than the chilled plants. Concerning the interaction between hybrid varieties and covering treatments, it can be
noticed that Super gold F1 which grown under white mesh cover 63% recorded a highly significant increases in plant height, number of
branches, number of leaves, fresh weight, dry weight, leaves area, N, P, K, total chlorophyll, total proline, total sugars contents, fruit set,
total yield, firmness, T.S.S. and Vit. C when compared to Super streen F1 which grown in open field (without coverage). |
