ISHS Acta Horticulturae 659: VII International Symposium on Protected Cultivation in Mild Winter Climates: Production, Pest Management and Global Competition
ANALYSES AND OPTIMIZATION OF LONG DISTANCE TRANSPORTATION CONDITIONS FOR HIGH QUALITY TOMATO SEEDLINGS |
| Authors: | C. Kubota, M. Kroggel, D. Solomon, L. Benne |
| Keywords: | controlled environment, flower abortion, grafted seedlings, illumination, photosynthesis, temperature, transplant production |
| Abstract:
Increasing numbers of vegetable growers purchase their transplants from specialized transplant producers instead of using their own facilities to grow their own transplants. A drawback of purchasing transplants is the risk of deterioration to transplants during transportation from transplant producers to the growers. This limits the market size, as well as the potential sources of high quality transplants. To optimize the transportation conditions that can minimize/eliminate the negative impact of transportation on the transplants and thereby on the early yield, environmental conditions during a 2-day transportation in temperature-controlled trailers were analyzed to detect spatial variation and time course environmental changes inside trailers. The trailers were filled with 6 to 8 week old tomato grafted seedlings. Transplant quality and early fruit development were surveyed at the hydroponic tomato growers’ site for seedlings transported at different temperatures. Reducing air temperature inside the trailer to 12°C from the conventional 18°C significantly improved the development of flower and fruits of the first truss. Optimizing environmental conditions is critical for successful long distance transportation of quality seedlings for fresh vegetable production in greenhouse. | |
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