The influence of supplemental light on the growth and productivity of greenhouse tomatoes grown to a single cluster on movable benches is examined, and the economic feasibility of such a system is evaluated.nExperiments were conducted to quantify the tomato plants' response to various levels of supplemental light in terms of growth rate and yield at various stages in their development (e.g., seedling, flowering plant, etc.). The 1984-85 experiments showed that supplemental photosynthetic lighting nearly doubled tomato yields, from 0.48 to 0.86 lbs/plant. Subsequent experiments in 1985-86 identified the best tomato varieties for this treatment and further increased yields to 1.3 lbs/plant. In addition, the use of supplemental lighting was found to hasten tomato crop maturity.
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