Effects of CO2 enrichment by fermentation of CRAM on growth, yield and physiological traits of cherry tomato

Muhammad Fazal Karim; Pengfei Hao; Nur Hazidah Binti Nordin; Chengwei Qiu; Muhammad Zeeshan; Alamgir Akhtar Khan; Imran Haider Shamsi

doi:10.1016/j.sjbs.2020.02.020

Effects of CO₂ enrichment by fermentation of CRAM on growth, yield and physiological traits of cherry tomato

Saudi J Biol Sci. 2020 Apr;27(4):1041-1048. doi: 10.1016/j.sjbs.2020.02.020. Epub 2020 Mar 4.

Authors

Muhammad Fazal Karim¹, Pengfei Hao¹, Nur Hazidah Binti Nordin¹, Chengwei Qiu¹, Muhammad Zeeshan¹, Alamgir Akhtar Khan², Imran Haider Shamsi¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Agronomy, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zijingang Campus, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, People's Republic of China.
² Department of Agriculture Engineering, MNS-University of Agriculture, Multan, Pakistan.

Abstract

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) concentration in greenhouses is sub-optimal for vegetable production. Many techniques have been used to increase CO₂ concentration in greenhouses but most of them are expensive with certain limitations and drawbacks. We adopted a new strategy to elevate CO₂ concentration in the greenhouse throughout the day via crop residues and animal manure composting (CRAM). During the whole cultivation period, CRAM-treated greenhouse had doubled CO₂ concentration which significantly increased the yield of cherry tomatoes (Lycopersiconesculentum L.) i.e. up to 38%. The influence of CRAM procedure on cherry tomato quality was also investigated and the concentrations of total soluble solids (TSS) and soluble sugar were found to be significantly higher in cherry tomatoes grown under composting greenhouse than that of non-composting greenhouse. Additionally, CRAM-CO₂ enrichment also resulted in increased concentrations of ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) and titrate acid as compared with the control. In contrast, the concentration of nitrate was considerably decreased in cherry tomato grown under CO₂ enriched condition than that of control. The increase in active oxygen metabolisms such as POD, CAT and SOD while a decrease in MDA, as well as APX was observed for cherry tomatoes grown under CO₂ enriched condition. Hence, CO₂ fertilization by using CRAM in greenhouse significantly improved quality and increased the yield of cherry tomatoes.

Keywords: Animal manure; CO2 enrichment; Cherry tomato; Crop residues; Quality; Yield.