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We conducted trials of vine-ripened, staked tomato cultivars in 1998 and 1999 to identify a variety suitable for marketing as a premium “Kentucky Tomato.” Essential qualities of our ideal Kentucky tomato were determined in conversations with marketing specialists at the Kentucky Dept. of Agriculture and merchandising managers from the state's largest supermarket chain. A carefully selected group of 14 varieties (including 10 from the 1998 trial) was evaluated at two locations for yields, returns per acre, appearance, and quality in 1999. New varieties were compared with commercial standards `Mountain Spring' and `Mountain Fresh'. Yields of different sizes and grades of marketable fruit were multiplied by appropriate market prices for a given harvest date and summarized in a single “income per acre” variable for each variety. Although many varieties were in the highest 1999 income group (`Fabulous', `Mountain Spring', `Emperador', `Florida 47', `Sunleaper', `Floralina', `Mountain Fresh', `SunGem', NC 98274, `Enterprise'), not all were acceptable in terms of fruit quality and firmness. `Fabulous' and `Emperador' had higher percentages of fruits with radial cracks at one location in 1999 than in 1998. Consumer taste tests were conducted in 1998 and `Mountain Fresh' and `Floralina' were considered the best tasting among the six varieties tested. `Sunleaper', `Floralina', `SunGem', NC 98274, and `Fabulous' (for local markets) together with `Mountain Fresh' were considered prime `Kentucky Tomato' candidates and were recommended for further testing in farmers' fields in 2000.
Brassicaceae seed meals (BSMs) average 6% nitrogen (N) by weight and contain glucosinolates (GLSs) that produce biologically active compounds. A two-season field study was initiated to determine how Brassica juncea L., Brassica napus L., and Sinapis alba L. seed meals, each with different glucosinolate profiles, alter carrot (Daucus carota L. subsp. sativus) growth, microbial biomass N (MBN), and soil N mineralization. BSM applications of 1 and 2 t·ha−1 36 days before planting did not influence carrot emergence, whereas carrot emergence decreased up to 40% in S. alba treatments seeded 15 days after BSM application. Crop quality was unaffected by BSM treatments and total fresh market yields were equal to or higher than the unamended controls in both years. At 4 and 8 days after seed meal application, MBN in the high-GLS B. juncea and S. alba treatments was 48% to 67% lower than in the low-GLS B. napus treatment. Seasonal apparent net N mineralized expressed as a percentage of the total N applied in the seed meals was unaffected by glucosinolate concentration and ranged from 30% to 81% across both years. BSMs can be used to increase soil inorganic N and carrot yields, but crop phytotoxicity is possible depending on the meal and its respective glucosinolate content. GLS degradation products inhibit microbial N uptake in the short term, but longer-term N availability is not compromised.
Abstract
Gibberellic acid (GA3) was applied to globe artichoke plants prior to bud enlargement in the fall, and to similar plants during bud development in the spring. Single applications of 25 or 50 ppm were adequate to induce accelerated flower bud development. The rate of bud development was more pronounced when GA3 was applied in the fall. Although total yields from treated and non-treated plants were not significantly different, earliness was increased.
Abstract
Nodal sections of actively growing apical shoots from greenhouse-grown plants of Euphorbia fulgens Karw. ex Klotsch initiated new shoots after 4 weeks on a modified Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with 9.1 μm zeatin. When cultures from the initiation stage were transferred for proliferation to the same medium, up to 14 shoots 5 mm long or longer were obtained per culture 4 weeks later. Through subcultures, 40 transplantable shoots per explant could be produced within 12 weeks. Shoots were rooted in vitro in the greenhouse with satisfactory survival rates. Chemical names used: (E)-2-methyl-4-(1H-purin-6-ylamino)-2-buten-1-ol (zeatin).