Mechanical Properties of Tomato (Lycopersicon Esculentem Mill) Fruits Produced Under Different Field Practices

Abstract

Sustainable crop production plays an essential role in addressing food insecurity problem. This research was carried out to enhance the mechanical properties of tomato fruits through soil treatment, to reduce mechanical injuries during harvesting and handling operations. The tomato fruits were cultivated under three soil treatments, plot 1 “consisting of purely calcium-based organic manure”, plot 2 “consisting of purely NPK 15:15:15 fertilizer, and plot 3 “consisting of mixture of 50% calcium-based organic manure and 50% NPK 15:15:15 fertilizer. Tomato fruits from these experimental plots were harvested manually at pink maturity stage, and their mechanical properties determined in accordance with ASABE standards. The results depicted that the treatment options had substantial effect on the rupture force and energy of the fruits. The fruits produced with the organic manure, fertilizer, and mixture of manure and NPK fertilizer had rupture energy of 869, 821 and 845 N.mm, respectively. Likewise, the fruits sampled from the plots treated with organic manure, fertilizer, and mixture of manure and NPK fertilizer recorded rupture force of 98.4, 90.3 and 95.7 N, respectively. The observation that fruits produced through organic farming recorded the maximum mechanical properties is an interesting finding that can have implications for agricultural practices and food quality.