Effect of various culture media on tomato transplant production

ABSTRACT: The Soilless culture system is one of the greenhouse culture methods that is needed to the more condensed farming performances than the field culturing and are using a wide range of culture media. Hence in order to achieve the best and most appropriate culture medium to production of healthy, strong and homogeneous transplant, reduction of production costs and seed waste and to reach the best mixture for seed germination of greenhouse tomato, an experiment was performed with one cultivar of greenhouse tomato (ES 5124) in 5 beds and 9 different combinations in a completely randomized design with 4 replications in Jahrom city (Fars province). Some traits such as root number, root and shoot fresh and dry weight, length and diameter of transplants in 4-5 leaf stage was measured. The results showed that produced seedlings had better conditions in peat moss media and they were in the highest values. In addition, peat moss and coco-peat as pure form or mixed with sand, had better results than other media and cultivation in soil and caca-peat (palm-peat) media were not suitable for tomato transplant production.