Cherry Tomatoes Protein and Vitamin C Accumulation Response to Interaction Effects of Irrigation Duration and Water Salinity in Greenhouse Condition

Development of greenhouse products such as vegetables and fruits are widely increasing in Iran. Cherry tomatoes has been introduced as a valuable source of vitamin and most widely consumed staple food in Iran. The objectives of the present study was to compare the synchronic effect of irrigation period (I) at three levels: 2, 4 and 6 days once, and saline irrigation water (J) at four levels: 0.68, 2.9, 4.7 and 6.5 dS m-1 on the qualitative properties of cherry tomatoes. The factorial experiment on randomized complete block design (RCBD) with 12 treatments and 4 repetitions including I1J1, I1J2, I1J3, I1J4, I2J1, I2J2, I2J3, I2J4, I3J1, I3J2, I3J3 and I3J4 was carried out in a greenhouse at the college of agriculture, Shiraz University. Results revealed that the highest and lowest amount of vitamin C in cherry tomatoes, in quantity of 93.125 and 11.45 mg per kg was allotted to I1J2 and I2J2 treatments, respectively. Comparison of treatments consisting of 2.9 dS m-1 salinity indicated that I3J2 treatment have no significant effect on vitamin C accumulation. Similarity trend was found in treatments consisting of 4.7 dS m-1 salinity. Results revealed that the highest and lowest amounts of protein in cherry tomatoes, in quantity of 14.155 and 7.48 percentage was observed in I1J1 and I3J4. Comparison of treatments consisting of 4.7 and 6.5 dS m-1 salinity, show that all treatments with a difference of 1% have led to protein accumulation in cherry tomatoes.