Paper · 1989 · Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science

Mulch Surface Color Affects Yield of Fresh-market Tomatoes

Dennis R. Decoteau; Michael J. Kasperbauer; Patrick G. Hunt

8
claims
15
verbatim quotes
126
citations
1
research areas
✓
Open access · cc-by-nc-nd

Abstract

Abstract The influence of polyethylene mulch surface color on the plant light environment and tomato ( Lycopersicon esculentum Mill) production was investigated. White- or silver-painted mulches reflected more total light, and a lower ratio of far-red relative to red light, than mulches painted black or red. Soil temperatures were warmer under the black and red mulches. Mulch color also affected the yield and growth of tomato. Tomato plants grown with red mulch generally had the greatest early marketable yields and produced the least amount of foliage. Plants grown with a white or silver-colored mulch had lower early marketable yields but produced more foliage. These results suggest that mulch surface color can induce changes in the plant microclimate (e.g., spectral balance and quantity of light, root zone temperatures) that can act through natural regulatory systems within the growing plant and affect tomato plant growth and fruit production.

Abstract from the paper’s OpenAlex record; open copy licensed cc-by-nc-nd. Read at the source ↗

The text the model read, with the source record’s inline markup (italics, sub- and superscripts) rendered and its character entities decoded; quote offsets refer to the raw text.

Claims 8

Intervention effectobservedoriginal resultmeasured

Claim · model-written summary

White or silver mulches reflected more total light than black or red mulches in tomato production.

Treatment
White- or silver-painted mulchese1
Outcome
total lighte1
Direction
reflected moree1
Comparator
mulches painted black or rede1

Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Solanum lycopersicum
Solanum lycopersicum · TaxonKod B · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons ↗

Verbatim

e0

“The influence of polyethylene mulch surface color on the plant light environment and tomato”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 9–100 · show in text ↑
e1

“White- or silver-painted mulches reflected more total light, and a lower ratio of far-red relative to red light, than mulches painted black or red”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 162–308 · show in text ↑
Intervention effectobservedoriginal resultmeasured

Claim · model-written summary

White or silver mulches gave a lower ratio of far-red to red light than black or red mulches in tomato production.

Treatment
White- or silver-painted mulchese1
Outcome
ratio of far-red relative to red lighte1
Direction
lowere1
Comparator
mulches painted black or rede1

Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Solanum lycopersicum
Solanum lycopersicum · TaxonKod B · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons ↗

Verbatim

e0

“The influence of polyethylene mulch surface color on the plant light environment and tomato”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 9–100 · show in text ↑
e1

“White- or silver-painted mulches reflected more total light, and a lower ratio of far-red relative to red light, than mulches painted black or red”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 162–308 · show in text ↑
Intervention effectobservedoriginal resultmeasured

Claim · model-written summary

Soil temperatures were warmer under black and red mulches in tomato production.

Treatment
black and red mulchese2
Outcome
Soil temperaturese2
Direction
warmere2

Not reportedComparator

Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Solanum lycopersicum
Solanum lycopersicum · TaxonKod B · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons ↗

Verbatim

e0

“The influence of polyethylene mulch surface color on the plant light environment and tomato”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 9–100 · show in text ↑
e2

“Soil temperatures were warmer under the black and red mulches”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 310–371 · show in text ↑
Intervention effectobservedoriginal resultmeasured

Claim · model-written summary

Mulch color affected the yield and growth of tomato.

Treatment
Mulch colore3
Outcome
yield and growthe3

Not reportedComparatorDirection

Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Solanum lycopersicum
Solanum lycopersicum · TaxonKod B · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons ↗

Verbatim

e3

“Mulch color also affected the yield and growth of tomato. Tomato plants grown with red mulch generally had the greatest early marketable yields and produced the least amount of foliage”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 373–557 · show in text ↑
Intervention effectobservedoriginal resultpositivemeasured

Claim · model-written summary

Red mulch gave the greatest early marketable yields of tomato.

Treatment
red mulche3
Outcome
early marketable yieldse3
Direction
greateste3

Not reportedComparator

Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Solanum lycopersicum
Solanum lycopersicum · TaxonKod B · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons ↗

Verbatim

e3

“Mulch color also affected the yield and growth of tomato. Tomato plants grown with red mulch generally had the greatest early marketable yields and produced the least amount of foliage”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 373–557 · show in text ↑
Intervention effectobservedoriginal resultmeasured

Claim · model-written summary

Red mulch gave tomato plants the least amount of foliage.

Treatment
red mulche3
Outcome
foliagee3
Direction
least amounte3

Not reportedComparator

Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Solanum lycopersicum
Solanum lycopersicum · TaxonKod B · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons ↗

Verbatim

e3

“Mulch color also affected the yield and growth of tomato. Tomato plants grown with red mulch generally had the greatest early marketable yields and produced the least amount of foliage”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 373–557 · show in text ↑
Intervention effectobservedoriginal resultnegativemeasured

Claim · model-written summary

White or silver-colored mulch gave lower early marketable yields of tomato than red mulch.

Treatment
white or silver-colored mulche4
Outcome
early marketable yieldse4
Direction
lowere4
Comparator
red mulche3

Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Solanum lycopersicum
Solanum lycopersicum · TaxonKod B · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons ↗

Verbatim

e0

“The influence of polyethylene mulch surface color on the plant light environment and tomato”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 9–100 · show in text ↑
e3

“Mulch color also affected the yield and growth of tomato. Tomato plants grown with red mulch generally had the greatest early marketable yields and produced the least amount of foliage”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 373–557 · show in text ↑
e4

“Plants grown with a white or silver-colored mulch had lower early marketable yields but produced more foliage”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 559–668 · show in text ↑
Intervention effectobservedoriginal resultmeasured

Claim · model-written summary

White or silver-colored mulch produced more tomato foliage than red mulch.

Treatment
white or silver-colored mulche4
Outcome
foliagee4
Direction
moree4
Comparator
red mulche3

Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Solanum lycopersicum
Solanum lycopersicum · TaxonKod B · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons ↗

Verbatim

e0

“The influence of polyethylene mulch surface color on the plant light environment and tomato”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 9–100 · show in text ↑
e3

“Mulch color also affected the yield and growth of tomato. Tomato plants grown with red mulch generally had the greatest early marketable yields and produced the least amount of foliage”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 373–557 · show in text ↑
e4

“Plants grown with a white or silver-colored mulch had lower early marketable yields but produced more foliage”

✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 559–668 · show in text ↑

mulching · quality: postharvest · Solanum lycopersicum (tomato)Positive and negative results

55 papers: 44 positive, 11 negative or no effect

43 papers in the same direction as this paper · 9 in the opposite direction · 2 reporting no difference from an alternative

  1. negative
  2. positive
  3. positive

51 papers more in this group

See all 55 papers →

Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.