Response of cherry tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum var. cerasiforme) to different magnesium levels under naturally ventilated polyhouse

Abstract: The quality of agricultural production and their modulation by fertilizer application has increasingly received attention. However, the importance of magnesium (Mg) as an essential plant nutrient is well established, but its application has not been studied extensively specially in cherry tomato. The experiment was carried out during two successive seasons of 2018 and 2019 in polyhouse under ventilated condition to evaluate the effect of different Mg levels on growth, yield and fruit quality of cherry tomato grown under drip irrigation system. Foliar application of magnesium sulphate was done at three levels (0.2, 0.3 and 0.4 %) on three cultivars viz., Punjab Red Cherry, Punjab Kesar Cherry and Punjab Sona Cherry during vegetative stage at different time interval (at the first fortnight of January, February and March). The vegetative growth, yield and important quality traits of different cherry tomato cultivars, including TSS, titratable acidity were determined. Punjab Kesar Cherry cultivar showed 19 % higher total soluble solids (TSS) than Punjab Sona Cherry and 10 % higher than Punjab Red Cherry and also showed titrable acidity 20 and 9 % higher than the cultivar Punjab Red Cherry and Punjab Sona Cherry, respectively. The TSS and titratable acidity in tomato fruits increased with Mg application rates. A significantly higher yield was recorded with Punjab Sona Cherry (6.96 kg/m²) as compared to Punjab Red Cherry (5.63 kg/m²) and followed by Punjab Kesar cherry (5.29 kg/m²) with the foliar application of 0.4 % magnesium sulphate.