Effects of Date of Planting and Planting System on Tomato Yield in the Isabela Area

Abstract

Two tomato cultivars and two experimental lines were included in six bimonthly trials and two planting systems at the Isabela Experiment Substation on a Colo clay (Typic Haplorthox, clayey, kaolinitic, isohyperthermic) from July 1972 to May 1973. The results of these trials show that date of planting had a significant effect upon yield and number of marketable tomatoes. Highest yields were obtained in January, intermediate in November and March, and lowest in July, September and May. Environmental factors of temperature and rainfall were considered as the main limiting factors for these differences. The ground planting system outyielded significantly the trellis planting system used in these trials. The Isabela area is close to the coast, very windy throughout the year; thus plant and fruit damage is considerably higher in trellis than in the ground system. Besides, the production costs of the trellis system, on account of the labor-demanding practices, make it economically less competitive than the ground planting system. The tomato cultivars (Tropic and Tropi-Red) and experimental lines (S-486 and S-488) used in these trials performed similarly throughout all experiments in this study.