Effect Of Organic Fertilization And Polyethylene Mulching On Growth, Yield, Quality And Storabilityy Of Husk Tomato (Physalis Pubescens L.) Under Greenhouse Conditions

Husk tomato (Physalis pubescens L.) is a marginal vegetable crop in Egypt, but it has promised an opportunity to be an important and exported crop. Husk tomatoes are also characterized by being highly perishable due to their high moisture content, their respiratory activity, and their production of ethylene, which accelerates ripening and senescence. Therefore, the purpose of the study was to examine the effect of pre-harvest treatments of organic fertilizers such as rabbit manure, compost and olive pomace combined with NPK mineral fertilizers as well as polyethylene mulching such as transparent (TM), black (BM) and bare soil (control) treatments on growth, yield, quality attributes and extend shelf life during two successive seasons of 2020 / 2021 and 2021 / 2022. The obtained results revealed that application of organic fertilizers rabbit manure, compost and olive pomace with a half dose of NPK (F1) gave the highest growth parameters such as plant height, number of leaves, number of branches, stem diameter and weight, whether fresh and dry, in comparison to other fertilizers applications. The same trend was obtained by using transparent mulch (TM) compared with black mulch or bare soil. Using an organic mixture with a half dose of NPK (F1) combined with transparent mulch (TM) gave the greatest values of fruit yield and quality i.e., fruit weight, fruit diameter, TSS (%) and vitamin C throughout the two growth seasons. However, F1 fertilizer and TM mulching were most successful in minimizing decay and weight loss as well as giving a good general appearance (score) after 24 days as well as maintaining firmness and TSS content. Moreover maintaining vitamin C content compared to the untreated control during storage in two seasons.