39

AGRICULTURAL AND LIVESTOCK RESEARCH - ANNUAL REPORT 2009

RESPONSE OF SWEET MELON TO DIFFERENT LEVELS OF
NITROGEN AND POTASSIUM FERTIGATION
Abstract
Four levels of urea as source of nitrogen 0.0, 200, 300 and 400 kg/ha and three levels of potassium sulfate 0.0, 300 and 400 kg/ha
as source of potassium were used to study their response on Sweet melon crop in two locations, Jimmah Research Station and
Sohar Research Farm during 2005-2007 seasons under Randomized Complete Block design (RCBD) with three replications. The
results indicated that there were no significant differences (p>0-05) in both potassium and nitrogen rates in both locations for
number of fruits /m
2
. Average fruit weight (kg) varied from 1.9 to 2.0 and 1.4 to 1.5 for potassium and nitrogen in Jimmah and
from 1.8 to 2.2 and 1.4 to 1.5 for potassium and nitrogen in Sohar without any significant differences between the treatments. The
treatment K
2
gave highest number of fruits/m
2
(1.6) in Sohar and K
1
(1.4) in Jimmah. In general number of fruits was higher in
Sohar than in Jimmah for all the treatments. Jimmah produced heaviest fruits as compared to Sohar. No significant differences
were observed in potassium rates, nitrogen rates and interactions in yield in both locations. No significant differences were
observed in flesh thickness (cm) and total soluble percentage between the effects of potassium, nitrogen rates and their
interactions in both locations. Significant differences were observed between potassium rates and nitrogen rates in vacuole
thickness only in Sohar.
Ud
SJdGh LhdG OS e e jd (Joyce F1 U) dG e HSG ie ad SGQdG g jLCG
J . GQe KH FGdG edG dG GSG J bh .2007-2005 SGe N Lh QH YGQdG dG H
KHh SJd Qc SJdG Sh Qg/ c 400 ,300 ,200 ,0 je HQCHh Lhd Qc jQdG GSG
SJdGh LhdG jd dH HdG dG a QdG OY a je ha CG MJ d .Qg /c 400 , 300 ,0 je
IdG Rh Se hGJ .H QdG OY a LhdG jd dH je ha OLh Md M a ,QUh L e c a
L e c a LhdGh SJdG jd dH 1^5 1^4 Hh 2^2 1^8 Hh 1^5 1^4 Hh 2 - 1^9 H (c)
edGh QU a (1^6) HdG dG a QK OY YCG K2 edG YCG .edG H je ha CG hH dGdG Y QUh
fQe Id Rh YCG YCG L CG Mdh edG L a H fQe YCG QU a QdG OY CG Md .L a (1^4) K1
ha CG MJ d .bdG c a LfEd dH e KGh LhdGh SJdG je a je ha CG MJ d .QH
c a e KGh LhdG je h SJdG je H FGdG dG OGdG f h (dH) dG S a je
.a QU a SJdGh LhdG je H IdG S a je ha OLh Md .bdG
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INTRODUCTION
Sweet melon is an important summer vegetable crop in Oman. Many varieties were tested and evaluated for
adaptability; yield and quality potential in previous years and the top yielding cultivars were recommended
and released to the farmers. The productivity of these released varieties can be improved if proper cultural
practices were applied. Of all cultural practices fertigation is the most important in increasing yields in
sweetmelon. This study was therefore, conducted to know the effect of varying nitrogen and potassium levels
on growth and yield of sweetmelon in two different environmental locations (Jimmah and Sohar).
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The experiment was conducted at Sohar and Jimmah research stations for three years from 2005 to 2007. The
variety joyce F1 was used as recommended variety. Four levels of urea as source of nitrogen (0.0,200,300,400)
and three levels of potassium sulfate as source of potassium (0.0,300, and 400 kg/ha) were used. The treatments
were arranged in Randomized Complete Block design (RCBD) with three replications. The plot size was 12 m
2
(6m x 2m). Drip irrigation system was used. Spacing between plants was 50 cm.The levels of nitrogen and
potassium studied were split up into doses according to the plant stages (vegetative, flowering and fruiting)
and applied through fertilizer tank during the course of the trials. Triple super phosphate was added during
land preparations. Days from planting to first harvest and harvesting period were counted. Number of fruits
were counted and weighed (fruit weight (kg)) by taking three fruit samples. These fruit samples were analysed
for flesh and vacuole thickness and total soluble solids (TSS) in percentage. The data were statistically analyzed
using Mstat-C.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Yield components and yield:
No significant differences were recorded for the effects of potassium rates, nitrogen rates and interactions in
both Sohar and Jimmah in respect of fruit number and fruit weight. Increasing nitrogen rates did not show
large effect on fruit number in both locations although treatment N
2
showed slight increase in number of fruits
per square meter in Sohar as well as in Jimmah (Tables 1a and 1b). The.same trend was observed for potassium
rates, as K
2
gave numerically higher number of fruits/ m
2
(1.6) in Sohar and K
1
(1.4) in Jimmah. In general
number of fruits was more in Sohar than in Jimmah in all the treatments.
Table 1 a. Fruit number/m
2
as affected by potassium and nitrogen fertigation for three seasons at
Sohar
Potassium rates Nitrogen Rates Means
N
0
N
1
N
2
N
3
K
0
1.5 1.6 1.6 1.3 1.5
K
1
1.4 1.4 1.6 1.6 1.5
K
2
1.6 1.6 1.6 1.6 1.6
Mean 1.5 1.5 1.6 1.5
LSD at 0.05 for Potassium = NS, LSD at 0.05 for Nitrogen = NS; LSD at 0.05 for (KxN) = NS
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Table 1 b. Fruit number/m
2
as affected by potassium and nitrogen fertigation for three seasons in
Jimmah
Potassium rates Nitrogen Rates Means
N0 N1 N2 N3
K0 1.00 1.20 1.45 1.31 1.24
K1 1.41 1.23 1.49 1.39 1.38
K2 1.05 1.23 1.24 1.31 1.21
Mean 1.15 1.22 1.39 1.34
LSD at 0.05 for Potassium = NS ; LSD at 0.05 for Nitrogen = 0.13; LSD at 0.05 for (KxN) = NS
Average fruit weight (kg) varied from 1.9 to 2.0 and 1.4 to 1.5 for potassium in Jimmah and Sohar and 1.8 to 2.2
and 1.4 to 1.5 for nitrogen in Jimmah and Sohar, respectively, without any significant differences between the
treatments (Tables 2a and 2b). Jimmah produced heaviest fruits as compared to Sohar. Nitrogen and potassium
gave little effect in weight of the fruits in general.
Table 2 a. Average fruit weight (kg) as affected by potassium and nitrogen fertigation for three
seasons in Sohar
Potassium rates Nitrogen Rates Means
N0 N1 N2 N3
K0 1.3 1.4 1.4 1.5 1.4
K1 1.3 1.4 1.4 1.6 1.4
K2 1.6 1.6 1.5 1.5 1.5
Means 1.4 1.5 1.4 1.5
LSD at 0.05 for Potassium = NS; LSD at 0.05 for Nitrogen = NS; LSD at 0.05 for (KxN) = NS
Table 2 b. Average fruit weight (kg) as affected by potassium and nitrogen fertigation for three
seasons in Jimmah
Potassium rates Nitrogen Rates Means
N0 N1 N2 N3
K0 2.2 1.8 1.8 2.0 2.0
K1 2.1 1.8 1.9 1.8 1.9
K2 2.2 1.8 1.9 1.9 2.0
Mean 2.15 1.81 1.90 1.90
LSD at 0.05 for Potassium = NS; LSD at 0.05 for Nitrogen = NS; LSD at 0.05 for (KxN) = NS
No significant differences were observed in the effects of potassium rates, nitrogen rates and interactions on
yield of sweet melon in both Sohar and Jimmah. However, numerically yield was higher at higher rates, which
indicated that the fertigation had affected the yield (Tables 3 a and b). Increasing nitrogen and potassium rates
increased the yield of sweet melon in Sohar whereas in Jimmah this phenomenon was not seen with respect
to the yield of sweet melon.
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Table 3 a. Yield t/ha as affected by potassium and nitrogen fertigation for three seasons in Sohar
Potassium rates Nitrogen Rates Means
N0 N1 N2 N3
K0 19.5 22.2 22.9 18.8 20.8
K1 19.2 19.3 22.9 24.0 21.3
K2 23.7 23.3 21.2 24.5 23.2
Mean 20.8 21.6 22.3 22.4
LSD at 0.05 for Potassium = NS; LSD at 0.05 for Nitrogen = NS; LSD at 0.05 for (KxN) = NS
Table 3 b. Yield t/ha as affected by potassium and nitrogen fertigation for three seasons in Jimmah
Potassium rates Nitrogen Rates Means
N0 N1 N2 N3
K0 20.2 21.6 25.3 26.1 23.3
K1 28.2 21.3 29.0 24.5 25.8
K2 21.4 23.6 24.0 24.7 23.5
Mean 23.3 22.1 26.1 25.1
LSD at 0.05 for Potassium = NS; LSD at 0.05 for Nitrogen = NS; LSD at 0.05 for (KxN) = NS
Mohamed and El Amin (2006) indicated that total yield (ton/ha) of sweet melon increased with the increase of
nitrogen fertilizer. In the present study, the yield varied from 20.8 to 23.2 t/ha in Sohar and from 23.3 to 25.8 t/
ha in Jimmah for potassium rates and from 20.8 to 22.4 t/ha in Sohar and from 22.1 to 26.1t/ha in Jimmah for
nitrogen rates. All the rates of nitrogen and potassium produced high yield as compared to control in Sohar
whereas in Jimmah these were inconsistent. Treatment K
2
N
3
(400 N kg/ha, 400 K kg/ha) produced highest yield
of 24.5t/ha in Sohar while treatment K
1
N
2
(300 N kg/ha, 300 K kg/ha) gave highest yield of 29.0 t/ha in Jimmah.
The results indicated that yield of Sweet melon increased numerically with increase of nitrogen and potassium
fertilizers as compared to control (zero nitrogen and zero potassium) (Table 3 a and b). The increase in yield by
increase of nitrogen and potassium fertilizer rates were confirmed by the many workers (Rahn and Philips, 1946,
Zink and Davis, 1951, Carew et.al.,1953, Davis et.al., 1953, Sharples and Foster, 1958 and Bhella and Wilox 1989).
The authors reported that excellent crop can be grown with application of inorganic fertilizers and yield could
be generally increased by addition of inorganic fertilizers. According to them, the increased yield from N
treatment

was due to increased vine size and increased numbers of fruits.
Quality attributes:
No significant differences were observed between the effects of potassium, nitrogen rates and interactions on
flesh thickness (cm) and total soluble solids (TSS %) in both Sohar and Jimmah (Tables 4 a and 4 b)
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Table 4 a. Flesh thickness cm as affected by potassium and nitrogen fertigation for three seasons in
Sohar
Potassium rates Nitrogen Rates Means
N0 N1 N2 N3
K0 4.0 4.2 4.3 4.5 4.2
K1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.2 4.3
K2 4.5 4.5 4.4 4.4 4.4
Mean 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.4
LSD at 0.05 for Potassium = NS; LSD at 0.05 for Nitrogen = NS; LSD at 0.05 for (KxN) = NS
Table 4 b. Flesh Thickness (cm) as affected by potassium and nitrogen fertigation for three seasons
in Jimmah
Potassium rates Nitrogen Rates Means
N0 N1 N2 N3
K0 4.2 4.7 4.4 4.8 4.5
K1 4.4 4.1 4.4 4.3 4.3
K2 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.3 4.5
Mean 4.4 4.4 4.5 4.5
LSD at 0.05 for Potassium = NS; LSD at 0.05 for Nitrogen = NS; LSD at 0.05 for (KxN) = NS
Increasing nitrogen rates gave positive effects on flesh thickness in both Sohar and Jimmah. Increasing
nitrogen rates increased the flesh thickness of the fruit where as potassium had positive effect in Sohar but
inconsistent effect in Jimmah.
Significant differences were observed between potassium rates and nitrogen rates for vacuole thickness in
Sohar whereas no significant differences were observed among the effects of potassium rates and nitrogen
rates and their interactions on vacuole thickness in Jimmah (Tables 5a and 5b)
Table 5 a. Vacuole thickness cm as affected by potassium and nitrogen fertigation for three seasons
in Sohar
Potassium rates Nitrogen Rates Means
N0 N1 N2 N3
K0 6.3 6.4 6.4 6.6 6.4
K1 6.9 6.4 6.2 6.7 6.5
K2 6.7 6.9 6.4 7.2 6.8
Mean 6.6 6.6 6.3 6.8
LSD at 0.05 for Potassium = 0.19; LSD at 0.05 for Nitrogen = 0.22; LSD at 0.05 for (KxN) = NS
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Table 5 b. Vacuole Thickness (cm) as affected by potassium and nitrogen fertigation for three
seasons in Jimmah
Potassium rates Nitrogen Rates Means
N0 N1 N2 N3
K0 6.6 6.9 6.9 6.6 6.7
K1 6.5 6.4 7.3 6.2 6.6
K2 6.8 6.7 6.4 6.4 6.6
Mean 6.7 6.7 6.9 6.4
LSD at 0.05 for Potassium = NS; LSD at 0.05 for Nitrogen = NS; LSD at 0.05 for (KxN) = NS
Higher values of TSS % (total soluble solids) were found in Jimmah than in Sohar (Tables 6 a and 6 b).
Table 6 a. Total Soluble Solids Percentage (%) as affected by potassium and nitrogen fertigation for
three seasons in Sohar
Potassium rates Nitrogen Rates Means
N0 N1 N2 N3
K0 7.2 7.3 7.1 8.0 7.4
K1 7.2 8.0 7.6 7.8 7.6
K2 6.9 8.0 8.1 7.8 7.7
Mean 7.1 7.8 7.6 7.8
LSD at 0.05 for Potassium = NS; LSD at 0.05 for Nitrogen = NS; LSD at 0.05 for (KxN) =NS
Table 6 b. Total Soluble Solids Percentages (%) as affected by potassium and nitrogen fertigation for
three seasons in Jimmah
Potassium rates Nitrogen Rates Means
N0 N1 N2 N3
K0 9.7 10.3 9.9 10.2 10.0
K1 10.2 10.3 10.0 10.0 10.1
K2 10.0 10.0 10.4 9.8 10.0
Mean 10.0 10.2 10.1 10.0
LSD at 0.05 for Potassium = NS; LSD at 0.05 for Nitrogen = NS; LSD at 0.05 for (KxN) = NS
Conclusion:
There were no significant differences between the treatments and the sweet melon yield (t/ha) was nearly the
same between the treatments in both locations viz. Sohar and Jimmah. The most economic treatments like
K
2
N
3
(400 N kg/ha, 400 K kg/ha) yielding 24.5 t/ha in Sohar and K
1
N
2
(300 N kg/ha, 300 K kg/ha) yielding 29.0
t/ha in Jimmah, could be recommended for testing in on-farm trials next season.
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REFERENCES
Bhella, H. S. and Wilcox G. E. (1989). Lime and nitrogen influence soil acidity, nutritional status, vegetative
growth and yield of muskmelon. Journal of American Society of Horticultural Science, 114(4): 606-610.
Carew, J. C., Chupp, C. and Leipy R. W. (1953). Musk-melons and watermelons. Bulletin of New York
Agricultural Company. Cornell, 11: PP: [878].
Davis, G. N.; Whitaker, T. W. and Bohn, G. W. (1953). Growing and handling cantaloupes and other melons
in California. Circular of California Experimental Station. pp: 429- 437.
Mohamed, A. and El-Amin, S. M. (2006). Comparison between urea and chicken manure as fertilizers for
producing muskmelon (Cucumis melo l.) fruits in Khart-oum State for export. J. Sc. Tech Vol. 7(1):
Rahn, E. M. and Philips, W. H. (1945). The effect of various fertilizer and manure treatments on yield, size,
stand and disease resistance of Cantaloupes. Bull. Univ. Del. Agric. Exp. Sta. 256: 42.
Sharples, G. C. and Foster, R. E. (1958). The growth and composition of Cantaloupe plants in relation to the
calcium saturation percentage and nitrogen level of the soil, Journal of American Society of
Horticultural Science, 72: PP: [417 425].
Zink, F. W. and Davis, G. N. (1951). Nitrogen on cantaloupes. California Agriculture, 5(6): 9.
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EVALUATION OF CUCUMBER IN DIFFERENT CULTURE MEDIA UNDER
SOILLESS GROWING TECHNIQUES (OPEN SYSTEM)
UNDER GREEN HOUSE CONDITIONS
Abstract
Two different media namely wood straw and Date palm straw were used to evaluate the production of cucumber using soilless
growing technique (Open system) in green house during 2007/2008 and 2008/2009 seasons at Rumais. 250 black plastic pots
were filled with each medium. The treatments were arranged in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with five
replications. Significant (p<0.05) differences were observed between years and media (wood straw and date palm straw) in
number of fruits and yield. Cucumber yield varied from 3.6 t/gh to 5.1 t/gh under wood straw and date palm straw.
UdG
)Luna F1 U) QdG e QNG J
YGQdG dG e a (He e 270) Oe dG dG dG a (dG dG) HJ hH YGQdG f J dG IQf
d jb 250 .2009/2008 Seh 2008/2007 Se N edH
H LfGh QdG OY a GdG H je ha OLh Md .GQe H FGdG edG YdG GSG J bh Sh
.d dG Sh dG IQf Sh a dG dG/W 5^1 3^6 H LfEG MhGJ .edG SdG
INTRODUCTION
Hydroponics or soil less culture is a method of cultivation for growing plants without soil in either nutrient
solutions with inert medium (soil less or aggregate culture) or without (true hydroponics or liquid culture). The
first system uses an inert medium such as vermiculite, rockwool, gravel, sand, perlite, peat moss, etc. to provide
mechanical support. The soil less culture is classified either as an open system when the nutrient solution,
delivered to the plants, is not recycled or as a closed system when the surplus solution is recovered and reused
(Jensen, 1997). The cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) belongs to the Cucurbitaceae family, one of the more
important plant families. The cucumber responds like a semitropical plant. It grows best under conditions of
high temperature, humidity, and high light intensity and with an uninterrupted supply of water and nutrients
(Papadopoulos, 1994). Cucumber is important vegetable crop in Oman and it is used as salad table. It is grown
through out the year in greenhouse. Because of its short life cycle and high productivity under greenhouse, the
demand for growing cucumber has increased rapidly during recent years.
Protected Agriculture has become an important issue in the field of agriculture in the region. It gives high
productivity and good quality produce. Soil has a lot of associated problems in Oman due to continuous use
of same soil for growing vegetables, which has resulted in build up of soil born diseases and accumulated salts
especially in greenhouses. However, the cost of the media in hydroponics is high. It is important to find/use
local materials. Many researches have been conducted under such systems using different medias for
producing tomato as well as other vegetables cultivars- for example- in Arizona, USA study on comparing three
media for physical characteristics and tomato yield (Marle and Rorabaugh, 1999), effect of growing media
glasshouse tomato yield and quality (Gul and Seygican, 1989) and development of organic substrates for
hydroponics cucumber production (Hardgrave and Harriman, 1992). Several researchers (e.g. Tuzel et al., 2002;
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AGRICULTURAL AND LIVESTOCK RESEARCH - ANNUAL REPORT 2009
Parks et al., 2004) recorded the effect of different types of substrates on crop production. The aim of this study
was to evaluate growth, yield and quality of cucumber in two types of substrates, Wood Straw (WS) and Date
palm Straw (DS) as media.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The experiment was conducted during two seasons 2007/08 and 2008/09 in a green house (270 m
2
) covered
with insect proof net (80 micron) using soilless growing technique (open system).Two media were used- wood
straw and date palm straw. The two media were analyzed for Ec, PH, N, P, and K. Seeds were sown in jiffy 7
during November and transplanted after ten days of the same month of the two seasons. 250 black plastic pots
were filled with each medium. The treatments were arranged in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCD)
with five replications. Plot size was 15 m
2
(10 x 1.5 m). Spacing between irrigation lines was 1.5 and between
plants was 50 cm.The treatments were irrigated using irrigation controller which was arranged to irrigate the
crop, four time a day at two minutes per irrigate at the beginning and increased during the course of the
experiments to about five minutes a day. The stock solution used was prepared from ready made fertilizer from
three sources according to crop stage and requirements as follows: Amcopest (20:50:10+TE) 1.5 kg at the
seedling stage. Kristalon (20: 20: 20) 10 kg at vegetative stage up to first harvest and Kristalon (12: 12: 36+TE)
40.5 kg up to the end of the experiments. Calcium nitrate 17 kg Sulfate Magnesium 6kg. Thus, total amount of
fertilizer used was NPK- 52 kg and calcium nitrate- 17 kg. The harvesting started after one month of transplanting
and it continued for a period of two months. Number of fruits and fruit weight was recorded. Finally, the data
collected were subjected to statistical analysized using MSTATC program.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
Yield components and yield:
The results presented in Table 1 revealed significant differences between effects of wood straw and date palm
straw and their interactions in number of fruits per square meter in two years. In year 2008, mean number of
fruits were more (144) as compared to year 2009 (121) which could be attributed to the less number of harvests
during 2009 season due to infestation of crops with Aphids. Wood straw produced higher number of fruits
(137) than Date palm straw (127), as mean of two years. Number of fruits was higher in both Wood straw and
Date palm straw during 2008 season than in 2009, as the crop suffered from infestation of several aphids during
2009 which resulted in less number of harvests (Table 1)
Table 1. Number of fruits/ m
2
of cucumber variety Hana F1 in two different media for two seasons
in green house
Media Year 2008 Year 2009 Means
Wood straw 154 121 137
Date palm straw 134 120 127
Mean 144 121
LSD for media (p= 0.05) =3.3; LSD for years (p= 0.05) =13.0; LSD for A*B ( 0.05) =71.7
No significant differences were observed in average fruit weight for both wood straw and date palm straw. Park
et al. (2004) reported no significant effect of substrate on average weight of cucumber. Significant differences
were observed in average fruit weight for years and interactions between media and the years. Differences in
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AGRICULTURAL AND LIVESTOCK RESEARCH - ANNUAL REPORT 2009
average fruit weight could be due to the fact that during year 2008 the number of harvests were more than
that in year 2009 due to the infestation of the crop by Aphids (Table 2).
Table 2. Average fruit weight (g) of cucumber variety Hana F1 in two different media for two season
in green house
Media Year 2008 Year 2009 Means
Wood straw 124 110 117
Date palm straw 124 109 17
Means 124 110
LSD for media (p= 0.05) =NS; LSD for years (p=0.05) =5.2; LSD for A*B (at p= 0.05) = 7.4
Yield varied from 3.6 t/ gh to 5.1 t/gh for Wood straw and Date palm straw respectively without significant
differences among the media (for two seasons).
Table 3. Yield t/gh of cucumber variety Hana F1 in two different media for two season in green house
Media Year 2008 Year 2009 Means
Wood straw 5.1 3.6 4.4
Date palm straw 4.5 3.6 4.1
Means 4.8 3.6
LSD for media (p=0.05) =0.21; LSD for years (p= 0.05) =0.11; LSD for A*B (p= 0.05) =0.25
Park et al (2004) reported that there was no significant effect of substrate on plant dry weight, cucumber
number and average fruit weight. Hence, the authors concluded that average growth media could be
successfully used for hydroponics cucumber production. Sawan et al. (1999) indicated that saw dust could be
used as a substrate as medium for cucumber seedling production. Hardgrave and Harriman (1994) reported
that hortibre was the most successful substrate to give the best fruit production. In the present study, the yield
of cucumber was significantly higher in 2008 (4.8 t/gh) than in 2009 (3.6 t/gh). Interactions between the years
and media were also significant. Wood straw produced significantly higher yield (4.4 t/ gh) than Date palm
straw (4.1 t/gh).
REFERENCES
Hardgrave, M. and Harriman, M. (1992). Development of Organic Substrates for Hydroponics cucumber
Production. : International Symposium on Growing Media & Plant Nutrition in Horticulture Acta
Horticulturae 401.
Jensen, M.H. and Collin, W.L. (1985). Hydroponics vegetable production. Hort. Rev., pp: 483-58.
Papadopoulos, A.P. (1994). Growing Greenhouse Cucumbers in Soil and in Soil less Media. Research Station,
Harrow, Canada. Publication 1902/E. Communications Branch, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.
Ottawa, ON K1A 0C7.
Parks, S., Newman, S. and Golding, J. (2004). Substrate effects on greenhouse cucumber growth and fruit
quality in Australia. Acta Horticulturae, (No. 648) 129-133.
Tzel, Y., Eltez, R.Z., Tzel, I.H., Akat, O. and Gl, A. (2002). Comparison of open and closed systems on
yield and quality of greenhouse grown tomatoes. Acta Hort. 579:585-590.
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EVALUATION OF TOMATO UNDER SOIL-LESS GROWING TECHNIQUE
(OPEN SYSTEM) USING SAND AS MEDIA IN COOLED GREENHOUSE
Abstract
Three tomato varieties namely Majestic F1, Salam F1 and Sancak F1 were evaluated using sand as media in soilless growing
technique for their yield performance during two consecutive seasons- 2007/08 and 2008/09 in two planting dates (October
March) and (January May) in cooled greenhouse (270 m
2
) at Rumais. The varieties were arranged in Randomized Complete
Block Design (RCBD) with five replications. No significant differences were observed in fruit number /m
2
for both years either in
October-March planting or January May planting. Yield varied from 2.2 t/gh to 3.6 t/gh for October March planting and from
1.9 t/gh to 2.4t/gh for January May planting as an average of two years. Variety Salam F1 produced highest yield in both the
years in two planting dates.
UdG
YGQdG f J gQK IOLh LfEG ad ( Sancak F1 , Salam F1 ,Majestic F1 ) WdG e UCG KK SGQO J
h 2008/2007 SGe N edH YGQdG dG e a (He e 270) OdG dG dG a (dG dG) HJ hH
ha CG MJ d .GQe H FGdG edG YdG GSG J bh (je jj IhYh SQe HcCG IhY( 2009/2008
W 3^6 2^2 H LfEG MhGJ . je jj IhY hCG SQe HcCG IhY a AGS d HdG dG / QdG OY a je
YCG .dG Qd Sch (je jj IhY a dG dG/W 2^4 1^9 Hh SQe HcCG IhY a dG dG /
.dG N GhdG c a LfEG YCG Salam F1 dG
INTRODUCTION
Hydroponics is a technology for growing plant in nutrient solutions with or without the use of an artificial
medium (sand, gravel, vermiculite, rookwool, perlite, peat moss, coir or sawdust) to provide mechanical support
(Jensen and Collins, 1985). Hydroponics systems are classified as closed (i.e. nutrient solution is recovered,
replenished and recycled) or open system (i.e. the nutrient solution supplied to the plant root, is not recycled).
Growing hydroponics vegetables is one of the most exacting and intense forms of all agricultural enterprises
and becoming increasingly popular. It is highly effective in conservation of water, and land and protection of
the environment. Tomato is a major vegetable crop that has achieved tremendous popularity over the last
century. It is grown in practically every country in the world, in greenhouses, net houses and open field (Taylor,
1986; Papadopoulos, 1991). Hydroponics is common in the world for production of tomato (Maloupa and
Gerasopoulos, 2001). It is a valuable means of growing fresh vegetables. It is therefore necessary to optimize
the possibility of tomato production through water and sand culture. Jensen and Collins (1985) showed no
significant differences of tomato yield in greenhouse in pure sand and sand mixed in varying ratios with
vermiculite, rice hull, redwood bark, pine bark, perlite and peat moss. Sand culture has been successful for
vegetable culture in greenhouses and is considered a good means of providing plants with a uniform, well-
drained rooting medium.
Tomato is a most important vegetable crop in Oman. It accounts for 37% of the total vegetable production.
Protected Agriculture has become an important issue in the field of agriculture in the region. It gives high
productivity and good quality produce. Soil has a lot of associated problems in Oman due to continuous use
of same soil for growing vegetables, which has resulted in build up of soil born diseases and accumulated salts
especially in greenhouses. However, the cost of the media in hydroponics is high. It is important to find/use
local materials. Many es have been conducted under such systems using different medias for producing
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AGRICULTURAL AND LIVESTOCK RESEARCH - ANNUAL REPORT 2009
tomato as well as other vegetables cultivars- for example- in Arizona, USA study on comparing three media for
physical characteristics and tomato yield (Marle and Rorabaugh, 1999), effect of growing media glasshouse
tomato yield and quality (Gul and Seygican, 1989). The aim of this study was to evaluate growth, yield and
quality of tomato under soil-less growing techniques using Sand as media.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The trial was carried out during two seasons 2007/2008 and 2008/2009 in cooled green houses (270 m
2
) under
soilless growing techniques (open system) in two planting dates. In October planting two varieties viz. Majestic
F1 and Salam F1 were tested while in January-May planting, three varieties viz. Majestic F1, Salam F1 and
Suncake F1.were tested. Sand culture was used as media filled in black plastic pots of 50 cm in diameter. The
EC of the sand was 0.6 dS/m and PH was 7.1 which was measured during first season and washed with water
during second season. Tthe varieties were arranged in a Randomized Complete Design (RCBD) with five
replications. Plot size was 7.5 m
2
(5m x 1.5m). Spacing between rows was 1.5 m and within rows, 50 cm. The
crop was harvested once a week. The observations on fruit number and fruit weight were recorded at each
harvest. Three tomato samples of each variety were taken for measuring total soluble solids percentages. Finally
the data were statistically analyzed using MSTATC program.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
October-March Planting:
Number of days from transplanting to first harvest was 70 days and picking period covered 108 days for all
varieties tested for both seasons. No significant differences were observed between the varieties in number of
fruits /m
2
for both seasons. Significant differences were observed in average fruit weight between the varieties.
The variety Salam F1 produced heaviest fruit weight as an average of two seasons (132.4 g). The variety Salam
F1 produced significantly highest yield of 3.6 t/gh equivalent to 131.7 t/ha as an average of two seasons as
compared to variety Majestic F1. No significant differences were found in TSS (Total Soluble Solids) percentage
between the two varieties tested and it varied from 3.8% for Majestic F1 and to 4.1% for Salam F1 (Table 1).
Table 1. Yield components and yield of tomato varieties grown in sand culture using soilless
growing techniques (Open system) during October-January season in Rumais
Variety
Days from planting
to first harvest
Picking
period
No. of
fruit /m2
Average.
fruit wt (g)
Yield
t/ha
Yield
t/gh
TSS%
Majestic F1 70 108 96.9 86.1 82.4 2.2 3.8
Salam F1 70 108 101.3 132.4 131.7 3.6 4.1
LSD at 0.05 NS NS 26.4 24.4 0.7
January May Planting:
Days from transplanting to first harvest was 67 days and picking period continued for 62 days. No significant
differences were obtained in fruit number /m
2
between the varieties on average of two seasons. Fruit number
varied between 81 and 87 /m
2
among the varieties and the variety Majestic F1 gave more fruits (87). Significant
(p<0.05) differences were observed between the varieties in average fruit weight and yield (t/ha) as an average
of two years. Average fruit weight ranged from 79.3 g for Majestic F1 to 101.1g for Salam F1. Highest yield was
produced by Salam F1 (2.4 t/gh) (Table 2).
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AGRICULTURAL AND LIVESTOCK RESEARCH - ANNUAL REPORT 2009
Table 2. Yield components and yield of tomato varieties grown in sand culture using soilless
growing techniques (Open system) during January- May season in Rumais
Variety
Days from planting
to first harvest
Picking
period
No. of fruit
/m2
Average
fruit wt (g)
Yield
t/gh
Yield
t/ha
Majestic F1 67 62 87 79.3 1.9 68.6
Salam F1 67 62 86 101.1 2.4 87.3
Suncake F1 67 62 81 89.1 1.9 71.3
LSD (p=0.05) NS NS 1.2 13.9 0.3 12.2
* NS- Non-significant
In general it was found from the both planting seasons (October- March and January- May) that tomato
performance was well in sand culture. The varieties showed good performance vegetativelly, yield and fruit
quality (Table 2).
Conclusions:
In conclusion, sand can be an alternative media for vegetable crop production under soilless culture (open
system) as sand is readily and cheaply available. Variety Salam F1 was found superior in yield and could be
recommended for cultivation under hydroponics.
REFERENCES
Jensen, M.H. and Collin, W.L. (1985). Hydroponics vegetable production. Hort. Rev., pp: 483-58.
Jensen, M.H. and Rorabaugh, P.A. (1999). comparing three media for physical characteristic and tomato
yield.

Plant Sciences Department, University of Arizona.
Jones, J.B. (1998). Tomato plant culture in field greenhouse and home garden. Catalog number,2025
ISBN:0849320259,USA.
Maloupa, E. and Gerasopoulos, D. (2001). International symposium on Growing Media and Hydroponics.82.
International symposium on Growing media and hydroponics. Kassandra, Macedonia, Greece.
Papadopoulos, A.P. (1994). Growing Greenhouse Cucumbers in Soil and in Soil less Media. Research Station,
Harrow, Canada. Publication 1902/E. Communications Branch, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.
Ottawa, ON K1A 0C7.
Taylor, I.B. (1986). Biosystematics of the tomato, pp. 1-34. In: J.G. Atherton and J. Rudich (Eds). The tomato
Crop: A Scientific Basis for Improvement. Chapman and Rudich, New York
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AGRICULTURAL AND LIVESTOCK RESEARCH - ANNUAL REPORT 2009
EVALUATION OF SWEET PEPPER IN AL-KAMIL
Abstract
Three varieties of sweet pepper namely Herculus F1, Polaris F1, and Majester F1 were evaluated for their yield and quality under
cooled greenhouse (270 m
2
) for three seasons 2005, 2006, and 2007 at AL-Kamil Research Station (Al Sharqia Region). Randomize
Complete Block Design (RCBD) was used with four replications. Significant (p< 0.05) differences were observed between the years
in fruit number and yield. High yield was given by Majester F1 (2.1 t /gh). Average fruit weight (g) varied from 145 to 149 between
years and from 153 to 173 between varieties, with significant differences.
UdG
hX J gQK IOLh LfEG ad ( Majester F1 ,Polaris F1 ,Herculus F1) dG dG e UCG KK SGQO J
bh 7002 , 6002 , 5002 SGe KK N (bdG dG) edH YGQdG dG H (He e 072) OdG dG dG
dG YCG LfEGh UCd GdG H je ha OLh Md .GQe HQCH FGdG edG YdG GSG J
Gd GL371- GL351 h GL941- GL541 H hGJ dG IdG Rh Seh (dG/ W 1,2) LfG YCG (Majester F1)
.je aNG OLh e dGdG Y UCGh
INTRODUCTION
Protected Agriculture has become an important issue in the field of agricultural in the region. It offers high
productivity and quality produce. Having diversity of crops in greenhouse production is very important
nowadays. This is due to demand by the farmers for growing specific crops like cucumber, pepper, tomato etc.
in their off-season. Sweet pepper has become an important salad food for many people in Oman due to its rich
nutritional value. Hence, experiment was conducted to evaluate sweet pepper varieties under cooled
greenhouse conditions in Sharqia region.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Sweet pepper varieties namely, Heracles F1, Polaris F1 and Majester F1 were evaluated for their yield under
greenhouse (270 m
2
) for three seasons 2005, 2006 and 2007 at Al-Kamil Research Farm in Sharqia. The varieties
were arranged in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with four replications. Spacing between the
irrigation lines was 1.5 m and within the rows was 50 cm (plant to plant spacing). Fertilization and protection
was followed as per Ministry recommendations. The harvest of the fruits was started after 90 days from
transplanting. Fruit number and fruit weight were recorded. Finally, the data collected were subjected to
statistically analysis using Mstat-C program.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Yield components and yield:
Significant differences were observed in fruit number / m
2
between the years and varieties. Fruit number varied
from 13.0 to 81-38 between three seasons. Significantly highest number of fruits were produced by the third
season (2008) followed by 2007. With regard to the varieties, number of fruits ranged between 38.0 and 48.4
and the variety majester F1 gave highest number of fruits (48.4)(Table 1).
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Table 1. Number of fruits /m
2
of sweet pepper varieties for three seasons in Al-Kamil
Variety Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Mean
Hercules F1 14.4 31.7 75.9 40.7
Polaris F1 10.4 27.9 75.7 38.0
Majester F1 14.3 37.1 93.7 48.4
Mean 13.0 32.3 81.8
LSD at 0.05 for years =5.1; LSD at 0.05 for varieties =5.6
Average fruit weight varied from 145 to 194 g between the years and from 153 to 173 g between the varieties,
with significant differences between them. Among the varieties, heaviest fruit was given by the variety Majester
F1 (224 g) in 2007 as compared to that in other years (Table 2).
Table 2. Average fruit weight (g) of sweet pepper varieties for three seasons in Al-Kamil
Variety Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Mean
Hercules F1 145.5 167.1 146.3 152.9
Polaris F1 171.7 189.1 156.5 172.5
Majester F1 160.7 224.9 132.2 172.6
Mean 159.3 193.7 145.0
LSD at 0.05 for years =12.7; LSD at 0.05 for varieties =10.8
Significant differences were observed in yield between years and varieties. 2008 was the best in yield which
was 3.2 t/Gh. The variety Majester F1 produced significantly highest yield (2.1 t/Gh) as compared to other two
varieties (Table 3).
Table 3. Yield t/Gh of sweet pepper varieties for three seasons in Al-Kamil
Variety Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Mean
Hercules F1 0.6 1.4 3.0 1.7
Polaris F1 0.5 1.4 3.2 1.4
Majester F1 0.6 2.3 3.3 2.1
Mean 0.6 1.70 3.2
LSD at 0.05 for years =0.3; LSD at 0.05 for varieties =0.2
Conclusion:
In general variety Majester F1 gave the best result in all production tests in all the seasons with the productivity
of 2.1 t/Gh.
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ABSTRACTS OF ON-GOING RESEARCH ACTIVITIES
EVALUATION OF TOMATO UNDER SOIL-LESS GROWING TECHNIQUE
(OPEN SYSTEM) USING SAND AS MEDIA
IN COOLED GREENHOUSE
Three varieties namely, Majestic F1, Salam F1 and Suncake F1 were evaluated under soilless growing techniques
using sand as media for their growth and yield performance under green hall conditions at Al-Kamil Research
Station during 2008/2009 season. Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) was used with three replications
No significant differences were observed in fruit number, average fruit weight (g) and yield between the
varieties. Yield ranged between 3.3 and 3.5 t/gh which was equivalent to 11.9 -12.8 kg/m
2
(number of plants /
m
2
was 2 plants). Total soluble solids varied from 4.4 to 4.7% among the varieties.
EVALUATION OF TOMATO IN DIFFERENT CULTURE MEDIA USING
SOILLESS GROWING TECHNIQUES (OPEN SYSTEM) UNDER COOLED
GREENHOUSE CONDITIONS
Three tomato varieties namely Majestic F1, Salam F1 and Suncak F1 were evaluated in two culture media
namely Wood Straw and Date Palm straw for their growth, yield and quality performance using soilless growing
techniques (Open System) under cooled greenhouse(270 m
2
) conditions during January-May 2009 season at
AL Kamil Research Station. The treatments (varieties and media) were arranged in Randomized Complete Block
Design (RCBD) with four replications. Significant (p<0.05) differences were observed in fruit number/m
2

between the two media which ranged from 44/m
2
for Date palm straw to 48/m
2
for Wood straw. However, no
significant differences were obtained between the varieties in fruit numbers per square meter. Significant
(p<0.05) yield differences were revealed between the two media and between the varieties. The yield varied
from 2.0 to 2.1 t/ha which was equivalent to 7.2 to 7.9/m
2
for Date palm straw and Wood straw, respectively
and from 1.9 to 2.3 t/ha which was equivalent to 7 to 8.4/m
2
for the varieties (2 plants/m
2
). Wood straw
produced highest yield (2.1 t/gh) for the media whereas variety Salam F1 produced highest yield (2.3 t/gh) for
the varieties tested. The trial will be repeated next season for confirmation of results.
EVALUATION OF CUCUMBER IN DIFFERENT CULTURE MEDIA UNDER
SOIL-LESS GROWING TECHNIQUE (OPEN SYSTEM) IN COOLED
GREENHOUSE CONDITIONS IN THE FARMERS FIELD
Two media namely Wood straw and Date palm straw were used to evaluate growth and yield performance of
cucumber production using soil less growing technique ( open system) in cooled greenhouse (351m
2
) under
farmers field conditions in two planting dates (Sep.- Dec ) and (Dec- March) during 2008 2009 season. The
two media were arranged using Randomized Complete Block design (RCBD) with five replications. No
significant differences were observed in number of fruits and fruit weight between the two media in both
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AGRICULTURAL AND LIVESTOCK RESEARCH - ANNUAL REPORT 2009
planting dates (Sep- Dec and Dec March). Yield varied from 2.2 to 2.3 t/ gh for the first planting date (Sep
Dec) which was equivalent to 6.3 - 6.6 kg/m
2
(number of plants /m
2
was 2 plants) and from 3.8 to 4.3 t/gh for
the second planting date (Dec- March) which was equivalent to 10.8 -12.3 kg/m
2
(number of plants /m
2
was
2 plants). Wood straw was superior in yield with 2.3 to 4.3 t /gh for both planting dates.
EVALUATION OF CUCUMBER IN DIFFERENT CULTURE MEDIA USING
SOILLESS GROWING TECHNIQUES (OPEN SYSTEM) UNDER
NON COOLED GREENHOUSE CONDITIONS
Three media namely Wood straw, Date palm straw and Sand were used to evaluate cucumber variety namely;
Luna F1 for its growth and yield performance using soilless growing technique (Open system) under non-
cooled greenhall condition during 2008/2009 season at Sohar. The media were arranged in Randomized
Complete Block Design (RCBD) with five replications. Significant (p<0.05) differences were observed in fruit
number, average fruit weight (g) and fruit weight between the three media - Wood straw, Date palm straw and
Sand. Number of fruits ranged from 68 to 117/m
2
for the three media tested and Sand medium produced
highest number of fruits (117/m
2
) whereas Date palm straw had the lowest (68/m
2
). Yield varied between
1.1 t/gh for the Date palm straw which was equivalent to 7.9 kg/m
2
to 1.9 t/gh for the Sand which was
equivalent to 13.6 kg/m
2
(2 plants /m
2
). The yield was very low as crop was affected by mites and aphids and
damping off after the rain and death of many plants. However, this was the first year of the experiment, which
would be repeated next season.
EVALUATION OF CUCUMBER VARIETIES UNDER
GREENHOUSE CONDITIONS
Four varieties of cucumber namely Hana F1, Nis 51-458 F1, Niz 51-459 F1 and Dervish F1 were evaluated for
their yield and quality under greenhouse ( 270 m
2
) conditions during 2008/2009 at Sohar Research Station.
The varieties were arranged in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with five replications. Significant
differences (p<0.05) were observed between varieties in fruit number and yield. Highest yield was given by the
variety Hana F1 (3.02 t/ gh). Average fruit weight varied from 0.108 to 0.115 Kg with significant differences
between varieties.
EVALUATION OF CUCUMBER VARIETES UNDER COOLED GREENHOUSE
CONDITION IN SALALAH
Three varieties of cucumber namely Luna F1 , Hana F1 and Dipo F1 were evaluated for their yield and quality
under cooled greenhouse (270 m
2
) condition during 2008/ 2009 at Salalah Research Station. The varieties were
arranged in non replicated plots. The variety Hana F1 produced highest yield of 2.4 t/gh followed by Luna F1
(2.2 t/gh) and Dipo F1(1.2 t /gh).
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SCREENING OF TOMATO VARIETIES UNDER WHITE SHADE NET
CONDITIONS IN SALALAH
Screening of two tomato varieties namely Majestic F1 and Salam F1 was undertaken for their yield and quality
performance under white shade net condition during 2009 from 11 January 2008 to 11 May 2009 at Salalah
Research Station. The varieties were arranged in a non replicated plots. Highest yield was given by Salam F1 (5
t/1000m
2
).
RESPONSE OF MUSKMELON TO DIFFERENT LEVELS OF NITROGEN AND
POTASSIUM FERTILIZATION IN SALALAH
The soil of Oman is generally poor in organic and inorganic colloids because of its texture and poor structure.
This leads to leaching of nutrients due to high permeability. Fertilization is essential in such soils and the
traditional practice is based on the farmers choice only that might lead to excess addition and leaching of
nutrients to the ground water and cause especially nitrate pollution. Proper scientific fertilizer program is
essential under such condition as no such activity was attempted for most of vegetable crops earlier in Salalah.
Variety Joyce F1 of Muskmelon was subjected to four levels of urea as source of nitrogen 0.0,200,300 and 400
kg/ha and three levels of potassium sulfate as source of potassium 0.0,300 and 400 kg/ha to study its response
to nitrogen and potassium fertilizers at Salalah Research Station during 2008/2009 season. Randomized
Complete Block Design (RCBD) was used with three replications. No significant differences were observed in
fruit number between potassium and nitrogen rates. Number of fruits varied from 1.9/ m
2
to 2.1/ m
2
for
potassium and nitrogen rates respectively. The fruit yield varied from 27.0 to 31.0 t/ha for potassium rates and
27.6 to 30.9 t/ha for nitrogen rates without significant differences between them. Combination of potassium
and nitrogen i.e. K0N3 (37.4t/ha) produced highest yield. No significant differences were observed in total
soluble solids (TSS) between the treatments. TSS varied from 6.5 to 7.2% for potassium rates and 6.4 to 7.0% for
nitrogen rates.
PLANT PRODUCTION RESEARCH CENTER VEGETABLE RESEARCH LAB.