NUTRITIONAL ACCUMULATION FOR SALAD AND ITALIAN TOMATOES GROWN IN A PROTECTED ENVIRONMENT

ABSTRACT Tomato cultivation in a protected environment is an important tool for increasing yield, quality, and regularity of production. However, nutrient imbalance in this production system can lead to short-and long-term losses. This study aimed to characterize plant growth and nutrient accumulation and export of two tomato hybrids of the Salad (‘Stella TY’) and Italian (‘HS 1188’) groups in a protected environment and determine the accumulated thermal sum. The treatments consisted of evaluation times. Dry mass and nutrient accumulation could be determined by a sigmoidal non-linear model for both hybrids grown in the protected environment. The cumulative nutrient order was K > Ca > N > S > Mg > P > Mn > Zn > Fe > Cu > B for ‘Stella TY’ and K > N > Ca > S > P > Mg > Mn > Fe > Zn > Cu > B for ‘HS1188’, with yields of 105.7 and 103.4 t ha−1, respectively. The accumulated thermal sum was 1851.7 degree days at 126 days after transplanting (DAT).