The effect of biostimulants on the quality parameters of tomato grown for the processing industry

The goal of the present experiment was to evaluate the effect of biostimulant application on the quality parameters of tomato grown for the processing industry in field conditions in Poland. The fruit chemical constituents, especially those affecting the health-promoting value and processing usefulness of tomato, were dependent on cultivar ('Esmeralda' F, and 'Dual Plus' F-1) and biostimulant (Asahi SL, Biozyme and Goemar BM 86). Biostimulants offered some potential for field tomato cultivation; however, the positive and statistically significant effects were clear only with respect to lycopene content and incidence of physiological disorders. The opposite effect was found for dry weight, beta-carotene, vitamin C, soluble sugar contents, and total antioxidant activity. Genetic factors had a more significant effect than biostimulant application with respect to tomato quality, thus this method can be recommended only for selected cultivar/biostimulant combinations. Ambiguous effect of Asahi SL, Biozyme and Goemar BM 86 treatments leads to the necessity of future investigations to clarify biostimulant impact on horticultural crops' chemical composition.