Growth and Physiochemical Performance of Red Cherry Tomato in Soil and Soilless Cultivation Systems

In modern protected cultivation several approaches are being used such as hydroponics, vertical farming, aeroponics and aquaponics. It is very important to evaluate the high-value crops under these methods to maximize their productivity and to minimize the risk of crop failure because of environmental factors under open-field conditions. In this study, seeds of Solanum lycopersicum var. cerasiforme (Red Cherry tomato) were sown in pro-trays for raising the seedlings. One-month-old saplings were then transplanted into two soilless systems developed in the polyhouse of the Department of Botany, Dayalbagh Educational Institute situated in District Agra of Uttar Pradesh, India namely, NFT hydroponic and vertical hydroponic, both supplied with Hoagland nutrient solution in triplicates. A control experiment was conducted under open-field conditions using recommended agronomic practices in a Randomized Block Design. Growth, biochemical, and yield parameters were recorded and compared across systems. Results of the study revealed that plants grown under both hydroponic systems showed superior performance compared to the control. Average plant height reached 179.46 cm in NFT and 165.86 cm in vertical systems. Fruit yield parameters also improved, with mean fruit weights of 33.70 g in NFT and 31.07 g in vertical systems. Fruit dimensions were greater in hydroponic systems, measuring 3.23 × 2.66 cm in NFT and 2.56 × 1.99 cm in vertical farming. Maximum fruit production was observed in NFT (4800.81 g/plant), followed by vertical (3767.13 g/plant) and control (1967.57 g/plant). The highest SPAD (85.58) and NDVI (0.86) values were recorded in NFT at flowering. Photosynthetic rate (14.36 µmol m⁻² s⁻¹) and stomatal conductance (0.118 mol m⁻² s⁻¹) were also highest in NFT. Soil-grown fruits had higher ascorbic acid (29.86 mg/100 g) but lower sugar content (6°Brix) compared to soilless systems (9.36 °Brix in NFT and 9.06 °Brix in vertical). Lycopene content peaked in NFT fruits at 90 and 105 days (294.24 and 305.70 mg/g, respectively). Overall, NFT hydroponics proved to be the most effective system for enhancing growth, physiochemical parameters and yield of cherry tomato compared to vertical hydroponics and open-field cultivation. These findings highlight the potential of NFT hydroponics as a superior system for enhancing plant growth and fruit quality compared to conventional cultivation.