Variation of The Leaf Area Index of Some Vegetables Commonly Grown in Greenhouse Conditions with Cultural Practices

Abstract

Leaf area index (LAI) values in plants affect photosynthesis and carbohydrate production directly since it is a measure of photosynthetically active area and the area where transpiration occurs. Leaf area index is an important parameter required to determine plant water consumption by using climatic data and it is especially used in the calculation of aerodynamic resistance. Leaf area index vary depending on plant varieties and cultural practices and can be determined directly and indirectly by various methods. In this study, it was aimed to determine the LAI of four different crops (tomato, eggplant, cucumber and pepper) grown in Antalya, where greenhouse cultivation is intensive, depending on the cultural practices. The results showed that LAI was significantly affected by cultural practices such as leaf pruning and climatic differences. Leaf area index obtained from this study can be used to determine the crop evapotranspiration and aerodynamic resistance of four different plants grown under similar conditions.