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Effect of Ozone on the Yield and Plant Biomass of a Commercial Variety of Tomato¹

ABSTRACT

A commercial variety of pole tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. H-11) was exposed to 20 and 35 parts per hundred million (pphm) ozone for 2.5 hours, 3 days each week over a period of weeks. Extensive foliar injury, defoliation, and highly significant reductions in plant biomass occurred at both exposure levels. However, fruit yield was significantly reduced only at the higher 35 pphm ozone concentration. This reduction was due to a decrease in the number of fruit and not to a decrease in fruit weight. Fruit yield in the 20 pphm treatment was equal to that of the control despite a 27% reduction in total dry weight of plants. These results indicate the presence of a threshold for the effect of ozone on yield.

Key Words: foliar injury • fruit • threshold

¹ Contributed by the State of California, Dep. of Food and Agric., Sacramento, Calif.

² Plant Pathologist, Dep. of Food and Agric., Associate Director, Statewide Air Pollution Research Center, Univ. of California, Riverside, CA 92507; Agricultural Inspectors, Dep. of Food and Agric., respectively.

Received for publication November 11, 1974.