Bioscience Methods 2026, Vol.17, No.3, 141-152 http://bioscipublisher.com/index.php/bm 145 3.3 Effect of water stress on biomass The impact of watering regimes on biomass components shown in (Table 2) in two Solanum lycopersicum genotypes, Hortitom 1 and Hortitom 3. In Hortitom 1, fresh and dry leaf weights remained consistent across treatments at about 9.00 g and 5.51 g, respectively, while root numbers were notably higher under T5 (7.50±1.04) than T7 (4.00±0.41), though root length, fresh root weight, and dry root weight showed no differences. Stem biomass decreased steadily with water restriction, with fresh stem weight falling from 15.43±0.22 g in T1 to 10.38±0.27 g in T7, and dry stem weight from 9.13±0.43 g to 4.53±0.28 g. For Hortitom 3, fresh leaf weight increased significantly under T7 (16.75±2.10 g) compared to T1 (8.50±2.06 g), but dry leaf weight stayed similar. Root numbers did not vary, root length peaked at T3 (6.88±0.51 cm), and fresh root weight rose from 3.75±0.48 g in T2 to 7.75±0.48 g in T7, with dry root weight highest in T7 (4.92±0.42 g). Stem fresh and dry weights declined gradually from T1 (17.05±0.13 g and 10.03±0.41 g) to T7 (13.88±0.37 g and 5.70±0.20 g). 3.4 Phenological and yield parameter Table 3 outlines water regime impacts on days to first flowering and fruit yield parameters in Solanum lycopersicum genotypes Hortitom 1 and Hortitom 3. Watering regimes impacted days to first flowering in both genotypes: Hortitom 1 flowered soonest under T1 (39.75±0.32 days), with delays increasing to 65.00±2.42 days in T7. Hortitom 3 flowered later than Hortitom 1 in every case, starting at 47.50±0.65 days in T1 and extending to 71.50±0.65 days in T7. Hortitom 1 produced a steady 5.63±0.13 to 6.50±0.20 fruits per plant across treatments with no differences, alongside slightly reduced fresh fruit weights from 3.75±0.63 g to 5.25±0.32 g under drier conditions; notably, fruit length and breadth grew larger, from 16.25±0.32 cm and 18.18±0.38 cm in T1 to peaks of 19.50±0.20 cm and 21.88±0.13 cm in T6/T7. Hortitom 3 showed greater variability, with fruits numbering 3.00±0.41 to 6.00±0.41 (highest in T4), fresh weights climbing in T5-T7 to 7.75±0.48 g in T7, and dry weights maximizing at 4.92±0.42 g in T7 yet fruit length shrank from 42.35±0.65 cm in T1 to 18.35±0.65 cm in T7, while breadth fell from 75.28±0.65 cm to 51.28±0.65 cm. 3.5 Proximate and minerals composition The results in Table 4 reveal the proximate and mineral compositions of Solanum lycopersicum genotypes; Hortitom 1 and Hortitom 3 across water regimes T1-T7. Hortitom 1 generally displayed higher and more variable proximate values than Hortitom 3. Moisture content in Hortitom 1 spanned 14.28±0.05% (T3) to 19.00±0.13% (T4), exceeding Hortitom 3's narrower 15.80±0.22% (T6) to 18.71±0.04% (T3). Fat remained stable and comparable, with Hortitom 1 at 0.87±0.01% (T2) to 1.14±0.02% (T5) versus Hortitom 3 from 0.83±0.00% (T1) to 1.12±0.00% (T2). Ash was broader in Hortitom 1 (3.66±0.01% at T6 to 5.08±0.04% at T5) than Hortitom 3 (3.56±0.01% at T6 to 4.99±0.02% at T7). Crude fiber showed Hortitom 1 ranging lower to higher (5.01±0.00% at T2 to 8.31±0.03% at T6) compared to Hortitom 3 (6.03±0.01% at T1 to 8.27±0.05% at T3). Crude protein was consistently superior in Hortitom 1 (1.10±0.01% at T2 to 2.06±0.05% at T5) over Hortitom 3 (1.05±0.01% at T1 to 1.85±0.09% at T4). Carbohydrates peaked much higher in Hortitom 1 (67.37±0.23% at T7 to 74.22±0.16% at T2) than in Hortitom 3 (66.41±0.08% at T7 to 70.65±0.03% at T2). For minerals, patterns were more mixed but often favoured Hortitom 1 in range and peaks. Calcium in Hortitom 1 went from 15.85±0.05 mg/kg (T2) to 22.55±0.15 mg/kg (T6), closely matching Hortitom 3, ranging from 14.80±0.10 mg/kg (T3) to 22.75±0.25 mg/kg (T4), though the latter edged higher at its max. Potassium was notably higher in Hortitom 1 (25.60±0.20 mg/kg at T6 to 35.95±0.45 mg/kg at T1) versus Hortitom 3 (24.45±0.15 mg/kg at T4 to 32.30±0.20 mg/kg at T2). Magnesium spanned wider in Hortitom 1 (19.40±0.10 mg/kg at T6 to 26.15±0.15 mg/kg at T5) than Hortitom 3 (18.60±0.10 mg/kg at T5 to 23.37±0.04 mg/kg at T6). Iron reached a higher peak in Hortitom 1 (1.27±0.00 mg/kg at T3 to 2.01±0.00 mg/kg at T4) over Hortitom 3 (1.33±0.00 mg/kg at T4 to 1.73±0.01 mg/kg at T3). Phosphorus was similar, with Hortitom 1 at 8.92±0.19 mg/kg (T4) to 14.04±0.07 mg/kg (T2) and Hortitom 3 at 9.11±0.12 mg/kg (T6) to 14.17±0.05 mg/kg (T4). Nitrogen was marginally higher in Hortitom 1 (0.18±0.00 mg/kg at T1/T2 to 0.33±0.01 mg/kg at T5) than Hortitom 3 (0.17±0.00 mg/kg at T1 to 0.30±0.02 mg/kg at T4). These trends indicate Hortitom 1's superior nutritional profile under water stress variability.
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