Plant density and planting arrangement for tomato plants of determinate growth

Abstract

Plant density and correct row spacing are fundamental factors for achieving profitable yield and fruit quality in crops. This study aimed to evaluate the yield of tomato plants of determinate growth and the physicochemical characteristics of the fruits in different planting arrangements and plant densities. Two experiments were conducted using the hybrids CVR-2909 (CVR Plant Breeding) and HMX 7885 (Agristar) in the first and second experiments, respectively. The experiments were conducted in a randomized block design with four replicates. Ten treatments were evaluated in a double factorial scheme (2 × 5). Two planting arrangements were evaluated in the first factor: single and double rows. The second factor comprised five plant densities: 15, 20, 25, 30, and 35 thousand plants ha-1. For the CVR-2909 hybrid, single-row cultivation resulted in the highest yield, while higher planting densities gave the lowest yield and number of fruits per plant. For the HMX-7885 hybrid, it was found that higher densities gave higher yields but caused a decreasing effect on fruit production per plant, average fruit mass, and number of fruits per plant. For this hybrid, the planting arrangement provided a higher rate of green fruits.