Impact of microclimatic modification on tomato quality through mulching inside and outside the polyhouse

An experiment was conducted to study the effect of polyhouse and different plastic mulches on yield, quality and shelf life of tomato. Experiment was carried out at Birsa Agricultural University Ranchi during December 2012 to May 2013. Fruits were harvested at full mature stage to determine fruit yield, number of fruits per plant and average fruit weight. Random fruit samples from cluster were used to determine fruit outer and inner quality and shelf life. The results showed that fruit yield improved by mulching in both growing systems. Fruit yield increased by 2 times inside the polyhouse. Fruit quality in terms of total soluble solids and lycopene contentwere slightly improved by mulching in both growing systems. However, fruit size and shelf life were affected and fruit firmness improved by mulching. The result also showed that using simplified open system with mulch improved productivity and fruit quality of tomato in terms of fruit size, shelf life and firmness.