GROWTH AND YIELD PERFORMANCE OF DIFFERENT CHERRY TOMATO VARIETIES GROWN IN DIFFERENT CALCIUM LEVELS

Abstract

A pot experiment was conducted in the semi-greenhouse at the Horticulture Farm of Sher-e- Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka 1207, Bangladesh, during October 2019 to March 2020 to find out the best combination of calcium fertilizers and different varieties for successful cherry tomato production. The experiment consisted of two factors: Factor A: three types of variety viz. V 1 = Red Star F 1 ; V 2 = Sweet Charlie F 1 ; V 3 = Thai Pink Egg and Factor B: Four doses of calcium fertilizer viz. C 1 = 0 ppm; C 2 = 40 ppm; C 3 = 80 ppm; C 4 = 120 ppm. There were 12 treatment combinations and experiment was setup in Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with three replications. In case of varieties, the highest plant height at 60 DAT (255.32 cm), maximum branch number per plant (4.58) at 60 DAT, maximum chlorophyll content (75.71 %) at 75 DAT, minimum days required for first flowering (27.67 DAT) and first fruiting (36.33 DAT), maximum flower cluster per plant (30.83), maximum fruit number per plant (284.56), highest single fruit weight (10.52 g), highest amount of TSS (8.90 degrees Brix) and yield per plant (2.94 kg) were obtained from V 2 treatment. Similarly, in case of calcium fertilizer, the highest plant height at 60 DAT (233.92 cm), maximum branch number per plant (4.78) at 60 DAT, maximum chlorophyll content (81.53 %) at 75 DAT, minimum days required for first flowering (25.33 DAT) and first fruiting (33.89 DAT), maximum flower cluster per plant (35.28), maximum fruit number per plant (292.77), highest single fruit weight (11.61 g), highest amount of TSS (8.96 degrees Brix) and yield per plant (3.32 kg) were obtained from C 2

treatment. In combined effect, the highest plant height at 60 DAT (273.33 cm), maximum branch number per plant (5.67) at 60 DAT, maximum chlorophyll content (86.77 %) at 75 DAT, minimum days required for first flowering (24.00 DAT) and first fruiting (32.00 DAT), maximum flower cluster per plant (36.67), maximum fruit number per plant (362.02), highest single fruit weight (13.33 g), highest amount of TSS (9.47 degrees Brix) and yield per plant (4.34 kg) were obtained from V 2 C 2 treatment. Among the treatment combination, V 2 (Sweet Charlie F 1 variety with 40 ppm Ca) treatment seemed to be more promising for obtaining higher yield of cherry tomato.