FOLIAR APPLICATION OF GLYCINEBETAINE - A NOVEL PRODUCT FROM SUGAR-BEET - AS AN APPROACH TO INCREASE TOMATO YIELD

Glycinebetaine, a novel product from sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L. v. a ltissima), is purified from molasses during sugar processing through c hromatographic separation, enrichment and crystallisation. Glycinebeta ine is environmentally safe, non-toxic and water-soluble and is found in animal, microbe and plant cells, Most halophytes, when grown under stress, synthesise glycinebetaine in their chloroplasts and accumulate it as an osmoprotectant. Here we show that foliarly applied glycinebe taine offers a new possibility to stabilise crop production under fiel d conditions: fruit yield of tomato plants (Lycopersicon esculentum Mi ll.) grown in saline scils or exposed to high temperatures in Californ ia increased up to 39% when glycinebetaine was applied during midflowe ring. Similarly, glycinebetaine treatment of tomato plants in a commer cial vegetable producer's greenhouse in Southern Finland increased the yield and the number of tomato fruits. In a separate greenhouse exper iment, we showed that glycinebetaine application increased the rate of net photosynthesis of adequately watered and salt stressed tomato pla nts. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.