Validation of a Computer Model for a Single-truss Tomato Cropping System

Abstract

Abstract The accuracy of a computer planning model for the management of a single-truss tomato ( Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) production system was tested in the greenhouse. The model was used to generate a production schedule for 24 successive crops during a 15-month study. The time, in days, required for an emerging seedling to reach anthesis and the total fresh weight fruit yield were predicted for each of the 24 crops by the planning model. Correlation analysis, used to compare the expected crop response (i.e., data generated by the planning model) to the actual crop response, indicated that both the number of days from emergence to anthesis and fresh weight fruit yield were accurately forecast, r 2 = 0.76 and 0.83, respectively. More important, the cropping schedule that was generated by the planning model successfully produced a continuous harvest of tomatoes from sequential crops.