Effect of Growing Medium Type and Foliar Application of K.P.N Fertilizer on the Growth and Yield of Cherry Tomato under Unheated Greenhouse Conditions.

Kareem Hasan Al-Tufaili, Aqeel; Nadhim Ali, Khalid

doi:10.48311/fsct.2026.120945.83181

Effect of Growing Medium Type and Foliar Application of K.P.N Fertilizer on the Growth and Yield of Cherry Tomato under Unheated Greenhouse Conditions.

نوع مقاله : مقاله پژوهشی

نویسندگان

Aqeel Kareem Hasan Al-Tufaili

Khalid Nadhim Ali

Department of Horticulture and Landscape, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Kufa, Najaf, Iraq.

10.48311/fsct.2026.120945.83181

چکیده

The experiment was conducted at the research station of the College of Agriculture, University of Kufa, Najaf Governorate, during the 2025 growing season to determine the effect of growing medium type and foliar spraying with NPK fertilizer on the growth, yield, and post-harvest quality of cherry tomato fruits. The growing media included four treatments: Sand as the control (C1), a mixture of Peat moss and Perlite (1:1) (C2), a mixture of Peat moss and Perlite (1:2) (C3), and a mixture of Peat moss and Perlite (2:1) (C4). Foliar spraying with NPK fertilizer was applied at concentrations of 0, 3, and 4 g L⁻¹. The experiment was conducted as a Split Plot Design according to a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replicates. In addition to pre-harvest measurements (plant height, leaf number, leaf area, total chlorophyll, and total yield), a comprehensive post-harvest quality evaluation was performed. This included fruit firmness (kg/cm²), total soluble solids (TSS, %), titratable acidity (%), vitamin C content (mg/100g f.w.), lycopene content (mg/100g f.w.), β-carotene content (mg/100g f.w.), total phenolic content (mg GAE/100g f.w.), and DPPH radical scavenging activity (%). A sensory evaluation using a 9-point hedonic scale was also conducted. The results showed that the C2 growing medium (peat moss:perlite 1:1) combined with NPK at 3 g L⁻¹ significantly improved both yield and post-harvest quality, producing fruits with the highest firmness (3.82 kg/cm²), vitamin C (28.4 mg/100g), total phenolics (145.2 mg GAE/100g), and antioxidant activity (68.7%), as well as the highest sensory acceptability (8.3/9).

کلیدواژه‌ها

Cherry tomato

Solanum lycopersicum var. cerasiforme

post-harvest quality

antioxidant activity

sensory evaluation

food processing

موضوعات

علوم کشاورزی و زیست شناسی (عمومی)

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