EFFECT OF PLANT-DENSITY AND DRASTIC PRUNING ON TOMATO YIELD INSIDE A PLASTIC GREENHOUSE

Yield response of ''Monte Carlo'' tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum), to high plant densities and prunning systems inside a plastic greenhouse was evaluated at Santa Maria, RS State, Brazil. Treatments were: 20,0 00, 40,000, 80,000 and 100,000 plants ha(-1) prunned at 2(nd) or 3(rd) cluster and 30,000 and 40,000 plants ha(-1) prunned at 7(th) cluster. Tomato plants were conducted by one steam. The experiment was carried out during winter-spring crop-season. Marketable fruit yield was high er when plants were grown at 80,000 and 100,000 plants ha(-1) densitie s with three clusters. These yields were similar to the treatments wit h seven clusters. It was observed a significant reduction in fruit har vest period in the treatments with drastic prunning without substantia lly reduce yield.