The Effects of Crown Removal, Short Days and Polyethylene Mulch Color on Fruit Yield Parameters and Quality Compounds, in Tunnel-Grown 'Korona' Strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa Duch.)

The effects of exposing strawberry plants to a short-day treatment (10 h day(-1)) from August 10 to September 17, and reducing the crown number per plant in the following spring were examined on fruit yield and quality in Haygrow((R)) (UK) tunnel-grown strawberries. Reducing the number of crowns per plant increased degrees Brix level and reduced fruit yield. The yield reduction was lower than the reduction in crown number should account for, mainly because the number of fruits per crown was higher on plants with reduced crown number than on multicrown (MC) plants. Short-day treatment increased yield by 10% in MC plants compared with plants grown under ambient light, but the length of the photoperiod had no effect on quality compounds irrespective of crown number. However, for fruit size there was a significant interaction between day-length and crown number, expressed as increased fruit size of plants under ambient light conditions and no effect on short-day plants owing to reduced crown number. There were no interactions between other experimental factors on the characters in question here. (C) 2006 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.