Egg-laying preference of female fungus gnat Bradysia sp. nr. coprophila (Diptera: Sciaridae) on three different soilless substrates

Fungus gnats, Bradysia spp., are major insect pests in greenhouses. Adult female fungus gnats prefer to lay eggs in growing medium that is microbially active or that contains high amounts of peat moss or hardwood bark. However, egg-laying preference has not been demonstrated quantitatively. This study was designed to determine whether fungus gnat Bradysia sp. nr. coprophila females prefer any of the three soilless growing media provided. The three soilless growing media tested were Metro-Mix 560 with Scott's Coir, Sunshine LC1 Mix, and Universal SB 300 Mix. Initially, the egg-laying potential of the fungus gnat species used in this study was assessed by dissecting mated females after 24, 48, and 72 h. For the egg-laying preference experiment, adults that emerged from pupae were aspirated into a plastic vial, sexed, and then allowed to mate for 24 h. Individual mated females were released into an experimental chamber (15 by 15 by 5-cm plastic container) consisting of four 6-cm petri dishes, three of which contained soilless growing media and one with filter paper (control). In total, there were 50 experimental chambers, with each chamber representing a replication. Females remained in the experimental chambers for 48 h after which the growing media were processed using a flotation/extraction method. The number of eggs laid by female fungus gnats ranged from 21 to 217 with most eggs recovered after 48 h (141.0 +/- 9.3). There were no significant differences among the three soilless growing media in terms of number of eggs laid, although all three growing media were significantly different from the filter paper with higher numbers of eggs laid in the soilless growing media than the filter paper. Despite no significant difference among the growing media in the number of eggs laid, fungus gnat females tended to lay eggs more often, based on the number of petri dishes in which at least one egg was laid, in Metro-Mix 560 (86%) than Sunshine LC1 (66%), Universal SB 300 (52%), or filter paper (18%). Based on the results of this study, female fungus gnats may not prefer a specific growing medium for oviposition. However, fungus gnat females may rely on other factors not tested in this study such as moisture content and volatiles emitted from growing media in their decision where to lay eggs.     

Method for quantitative sampling of fungus gnat larvae in soilless growing media

A simple method is described for separating fungus gnat larvae from soilless growing media. Samples are first fractionated by water flotation with an inverted flask procedure and then the sediment is degassed under reduced air pressure and fractionated in magnesium sulfate (MgSO4) solution (density of 1.12 g cm(-3)). Fungus gnat larvae with only a small amount of contaminating debris are recovered from the surface of the MgSO4 solution for immediate counting or for preservation in alcohol. In evaluations of different commercial soilless growing media with a range of components, two repetitions of the water flotation step eliminated 20-40% of the dry weight of samples and virtually all of the perlite from further processing. Repeating both the water and MgSO4 flotations a third time only marginally improved the recovery of larval fungus gnats, Bradysia sp. nr. coprophila, added to pasteurized media. Extraction efficiency differed between instars and, to a lesser extent, between different types of media. Across three commercial soilless media tested, recovery was 24-33% for first, 68-85% for second, 85-95% for third, and 98-100% for fourth instars. Within combinations of media and instar, recovery was consistent. With this method, a 400-cm3 sample can be processed and be ready for counting in 1-1.5 h; samples can also be processed in batches or in assembly-line manner to process many samples per day. The method may also prove useful for quantitative recovery of shore fly larvae, thrips pupae, and other arthropods from soilless growing media.     

Quantitative sampling method for fungus gnat (Diptera: Sciaridae) eggs in soilless growing media

A simple method is described for separating fungus gnat eggs from soilless growing media. The flotation/extraction method primarily involves the use of a MgSO4 solution (density 1.065 g cm(-3)) and a series of sieving procedures. Bradysia sp. nr. coprophila Lintner eggs were collected in an isolation chamber containing adult fungus gnats. Three soilless growing media were used: Metro-Mix 560 with Scott's Coir, Sunshine LC1 Mix, and Universal SB 300 Mix. Each growing medium was inoculated with 100 fungus gnat eggs. Growing medium samples were processed using separatory funnels and a MgSO4 solution. Eggs were washed through a 250-microm sieve and collected on a 53-microm sieve, and then the eggs were rinsed into glass petri dishes. The sieving process separated fungus gnat eggs from the larger growing medium particulates (perlite, bark, and peat), providing a sample consisting of water, eggs, and fine growing medium particulates (peat). Using a vortex for 60 s increased the number of fungus gnat eggs recovered (37.4 +/- 3.7-67.1 +/- 1.9 [mean +/- SEM]) for all three growing media. The mean number of fungus gnat eggs recovered from the three soilless growing media was significantly different, with the growing medium containing coir (Metro-Mix 560) having the highest recovery rate of 61.0 +/- 2.1. For all three growing media, there was > 50% recovery of fungus gnat eggs. In addition to fungus gnat eggs, this method also may prove useful for quantitative recovery of shore fly (Scatella sp.) eggs and the eggs of other arthropods from soilless growing media.     

Fungus gnats vector Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. radicislycopersici1

Fungus gnat adults transported Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. radicis-lycopersici from Petri dish culture and infected host plants to the roots and hypocotyls of healthy tomato and bean plants. The source of the fungus did not affect the ability of fungus gnats to transport the fungus to healthy hosts. The presence of fungus gnat larvae in media in which young tomato plants were grown did not increase the incidence of plant infection by the pathogen. Fungus gnat adults appear to aid in the dissemination of F. oxysporum f.sp. radicis-lycopersici.     

Effect of growing media and their constituents on fungus gnat, Bradysia sp, nr, coprophila （Lintner） adults

This study was conducted to determine the attractiveness of two growing media, commonly utilized in greenhouses, to fungus gnat, Bradysia sp. nr. coprophila adults. The constituents of the most attractive growing medium tested were determined by gas chromatography analysis using a steam-distillation procedure. We found that fungus gnat adults were more attracted to the growing medium, SB300 Universal Professional Growing Mix, which contains composted bark, than to another growing medium （Sunshine LC1 Mix） and their components when tested in a series of laboratory experiments using multiple-choice experimental arenas. A higher percentage of fungus gnat adults were attracted to moist SB300 （92%） than SB300 growing medium that had been oven dried （8%）. In addition, fungus gnat adults preferred SB300 although they had been reared on Sunshine LC1 Mix. When comparing the SB300 fresh from the bag to growing medium that had been pasteurized and moistened with water, gas chromatographic-mass spectroscopic data showed there were declines in several terpenoid constituents as well as an increase in fatty acids and cyclosulfur. The results of this study indicate that B. sp. nr. coprophila adults prefer certain growing media, which may assist greenhouse producers in managing fungus gnats in crop production systems.     

Activity of an essential oil derived from Chenopodium ambrosioides on greenhouse insect pests

This study involved both greenhouse and laboratory experiments evaluating the effect of an essential oil product (QRD 400) derived from Chenopodium ambrosioides variety nr. Ambrosioides L. (Chenopodiaceae) on greenhouse insect pests that feed on different plant parts: citrus mealybug, Planococcus citri (Risso); longtailed mealybug, Pseudococcus longispinus (Targioni Tozzetti); western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande), and fungus gnats (Bradysia spp.). Treatments were applied to coleus, Solenostemon scutellarioides plants; transvaal daisy, Gerbera jamesonii flowers; or growing medium, depending on the insect pest. The essential oil was most effective, based on adult emergence, on both the second and third instars of the fungus gnat Bradysia sp. nr. coprophila when applied as a drench to growing medium. In addition, there was a significant rate response for QRD 400 on fungus gnats. The QRD 400 treatment had the highest percentage of mortality on longtailed mealybug (55%) compared with the other treatments. However, the essential oil was less effective against citrus mealybug (3% mortality) and western flower thrips adults (18-34% mortality) compared with standard insecticides, such as acetamiprid (TriStar) and spinosad (Conserve), which are typically used by greenhouse producers. This lack of efficacy may be associated with volatility and short residual properties of the essential oil or with the essential oil taking longer to kill insect pests. Other insecticides and miticides evaluated, including sesame oil, garlic, paraffinic oil, and Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. israelensis, provided minimal control of the designated insect pests. In addition, adult rove beetle Atheta coriaria Kraatz adults were not effective in controlling the larval instars of fungus gnats when applied at a rate of five adults per container.     

Attraction and oviposition responses of the fungus gnat Bradysia impatiens to microbes and microbe‐inoculated seedlings in laboratory bioassays

Laboratory tests were conducted to examine preferences of Bradysia impatiens Johannsen (Diptera: Sciaridae) larvae and adults for various microbes associated with greenhouse crops. Fungus gnat larvae and adults exhibited a preference for cultures of Pythium spp. over the medium used to grow the pathogens. Larvae also exhibited a preference for geranium seedlings infected with pathogenic Pythium spp. [P. aphanidermatum (Edson) Fitz., P. ultimum Trow, and P. irregulare Buis. (Oomycota: Peronosporales)] over non‐inoculated plants. Adult fungus gnats exhibited a strong ovipositional preference for the aforementioned Pythium spp. as well as a variety of other microorganisms, including the pathogenic fungus Thielaviopsis basicola (Berk. & Br.) (Ascomycota: Microascales), the geranium‐infecting bacterium Xanthomonas campestris pv. pelargonii (Brown) Dye (Proteobacteria: Xanthomonadales), the non‐pathogenic species Pythium torulosum Coker & P. Patt. and Pythium graminicola Subramaniam, the pathogen‐suppressive fungus Trichoderma harzianum Rifai (Ascomycota: Hypocreales), and the insect pathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana (Balsamo) Vuillemin (Ascomycota: Hypocreales). Our study is the first to demonstrate that fungus gnats are attracted to and/or stimulated to oviposit by a wide array of living microorganisms both in pure culture and in association with plant seedlings. These findings have important implications with respect to the potential role of fungus gnats in plant pathogen transmission.     

Acquisition,retention and dispersal of soilborne plant pathogenic fungi by fungus gnats and moth flies

Adult fungus gnats and moth flies were experimentally demonstrated to function as potential above‐ground vectors for three soilborne plant pathogens: Verticillium dahliae, Fusarium acuminatum and Thielaviopsis basicola. The adult insects externally acquired the conidia of the pathogens after exposure to the cultures as confirmed by scanning electron microscope photography. The intestinal contents and frass deposits of larvae exposed to fungal cultures contained viable fungal propagules. Internally infested larvae developed into internally infested pupae; however, the emerging adults were free of fungal structures. Because of the maintenance of a high level of inoculum on the external body surface and the ability of these adult insects to fly, they can be a significant factor in the dispersal of soilborne fungi in greenhouse agriculture. The rate of dispersal of T. basicola by adult fungus gnats was 1.78 cm² h^?1 per insect and by adult moth flies was 1.17 cm² h^?1 per insect. The area over which the pathogen was dispersed by the adult insects increased with the increase in exposure time. The study demonstrated that adult insects are efficient distributors of soilborne plant pathogenic fungal propagules.     

Persistence of Metarhizium anisopliae incorporated into soilless potting media for control of the black vine weevil, Otiorhynchus sulcatus in container-grown ornamentals

The objective of this study was to determine the persistence of Metarhizium anisopliae (F52), measured as infectivity against black vine weevil larvae, in a soilless potting medium at six wholesale nursery locations across the Willamette Valley, Oregon. A granule formulation (0.30 and 0.60 kg/m(3)) was incorporated into media at planting and fungal persistence determined over two growing seasons. The fungus persisted in the potting media over the duration of the experiment with 50-60% of the larvae exposed to treated media becoming infected at the end of the experiment. The percentage of infected larvae gradually declined from > or = 90% on week 3 to 40-60% by week 19. Larval infection rebounded over the fall and winter months of 2004 to 75-80% followed again by a slow decline over the course of the second growing season.     

Effect of diatomaceous earth and Trichoderma harzianum T-22 (Rifai strain KRL-AG2) on the fungus gnat Bradysia sp. nr. coprophila (Diptera: Sciaridae)

This study, consisting of three experiments, was designed to assess whether diatomaceous earth, when applied to the surface of growing media, reduces adult fungus gnat Bradysia sp. nr. coprophila (Diptera: Sciaridae) emergence or inhibits the females from laying eggs; and whether fungus gnat adults are attracted to the fungus Trichoderma harzianum T-22 (Rifai strain KRL-AG2) under laboratory conditions. In the first two experiments, diatomaceous earth was applied at two different thicknesses (3.1 and 6.3 mm) and conditions (dry and moist) to the surface of a growing medium (Universal SB 300 Mix) after the growing medium had been artificially inoculated with second or third instars of fungus gnats, or before female fungus gnat adults were released into each deli squat container. In the third experiment, preparations of the fungus T. harzianum at the highest recommended label rate (0.889 kg/m3) were amended into the growing medium and processed 24, 48, or 72 h before use in a series of three two-choice trials with a two-armed experimental arena. In the first two experiments, the dry or moist layers of diatomaceous earth, in general, did not affect fungus gnats in terms of preventing adult emergence or egg laying by the females. During the course of these experiments, we observed that the diatomaceous earth dry treatments expanded as a result of absorbing moisture from the growing medium, creating fissures that allowed the fungus gnat larvae to pupate and females to lay eggs. In the third experiment, fungus gnat adults were not attracted to the T. harzianum treatments in any of the trials.     

Phenolic foam rooting matrices allows faster transfer and more rapid growth of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Echinacea</Emphasis> plants in greenhouse

Shoot cultures of Echinacea × Sombrero® “Salsa Red” were rooted in vitro in rigid and flexible film vented vessels, in agar-gelled medium, and in phenolic foam plugs (Oasis® InVitro Express [IVE]). Rooted plants were acclimatized to greenhouse conditions in a peat-based, soilless medium or in a larger cellular plug (Oasis® Rootcubes® Wedge®). The size of the plants leaving the laboratory, the speed of planting in greenhouse medium, and plant growth in greenhouse medium were influenced by both the laboratory and greenhouse media in which they were grown. The largest plants leaving the laboratory were from agar medium. The speed of deflasking and medium removal was greatly improved with IVE replacing agar in laboratory vessels. Planting in the Oasis® Rootcubes® Wedge® allowed a further reduction in planting time compared to planting in peat-based medium. In the greenhouse, plants in IVE/Oasis® Rootcubes® Wedge® grew more quickly and had more leaves of better quality than those from agar, planted in peat-based medium. However, the best plants (based on number of leaves, leaf length, and plug quality) in the greenhouse were from IVE, planted in peat-based medium, a treatment that still required less planting time than agar-based medium. Pre-hardening of in vitro-rooted plantlets using vessel systems that allow for ventilation and easily transferred root systems showed superior greenhouse growth simultaneous with improvements in the efficiency of workers that handled the plants. This is the direct impact of vessel systems and matrix purposefully designed to facilitate this stage of growth.     

Insecticidal activity of Brassica juncea seed meal to the fungus gnat Bradysia impatiens Johannsen (Diptera:Sciaridae)

Fungus gnats (Bradysia impatiens) can be a serious pest especially to plants grown in confined areas, and although various methods of control are available, safer and more effective control measures are desirable. Mustard seed meal, a by‐product remaining after oil removal for use as a biodiesel feedstock, contains compounds called glucosinolates that hydrolyse to insecticidal 2‐propenyl isothiocyanate. Our objective was to produce a dose‐response curve for making recommendations of Brassica juncea seed meal applications that will result in fungus gnat larvae control. Twenty colony‐raised fungus gnat larvae were added to 20 g (226 per cm³) of potting media, and adult emergence monitored during 2 weeks using yellow sticky cards. Treatments included without meal, detoxified meal and 19 doses ranging from 0.05 to 3.0 g seed meal. A logistic model was used to predict an LC50 of 0.18 and an LC90 of 0.38 g seed meal for the 20‐g pot. The amounts of seed meal required to produce the observed LC50 and LC90 were predicted to produce 0.08 and 0.17 μmol 2‐propenyl isothiocyanate per cm³ potting medium, respectively. B. juncea seed meal has potential utility for the control of B. impatiens, thus warranting additional studies to determine the seed meal's chronic impact on fungus gnats, phytotoxicity and plant fertility benefits.     

Greenhouse application of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Steinernema yirgalemense</Emphasis> to control fungus gnats, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bradysia impatiens</Emphasis>

Bradysia impatiens Johannsen (Diptera: Scaridae) has recently been identified as a pest, in various greenhouse-cultured crops in South Africa. The control potential for different concentrations of a local entomopathogenic nematode (EPN), Steinernema yirgalemense Nguyen, Tesfamariam, Gozel, Gaugler and Adams, on a natural population of B. impatiens was determined in a cucumber greenhouse. Additionally, the effect of potting media on nematode movement to control an artificial population of fungus gnats was tested. Doubling the EPN dosage, from that recommended by a commercial product (5?×?10⁵ IJs m^?2), reduced the fungus gnats significantly after 21 days. The three different types of potting media, consisting of pine sawdust, coco coir, and a mixture of both coir bale and vermiculite, all had a positive effect on the movement of S. yirgalemense. A significant mortality was achieved for the introduced fungus gnat larvae.     

Parallel chemical switches underlying pollinator isolation in Asian Mitella

Floral scents are among the key signals used by pollinators to navigate to specific flowers. Thus, evolutionary changes in scents should have strong impacts on plant diversification, although scent‐mediated plant speciation through pollinator shifts has rarely been demonstrated, despite being likely. To examine whether and how scent‐mediated plant speciation may have occurred, we investigated the Asimitellaria plant lineage using multidisciplinary approaches including pollinator observations, chemical analyses of the floral scents, electroantennographic analyses and behavioural bioassays with the pollinators. We also performed phylogenetically independent contrast analyses of the pollinator/floral scent associations. First, we confirmed that the pairs of the sympatric, cross‐fertile Asimitellaria species in three study sites consistently attract different pollinators, namely long‐tongued and short‐tongued fungus gnats. We also found that a stereoisomeric set of floral volatiles, the lilac aldehydes, could be responsible for the pollinator specificity. This is because the compounds consistently elicited responses in the antennae of the long‐tongued fungus gnats and had contrasting effects on the two pollinators, that is triggering the nectaring behaviour of long‐tongued fungus gnats while repelling short‐tongued fungus gnats in a laboratory experiment. Moreover, we discovered that volatile composition repeatedly switched in Asimitellaria between species adapted to long‐tongued and short‐tongued fungus gnats. Collectively, our results support the idea that recurrent scent‐mediated speciation has taken place in the Asimitellaria–fungus gnat system.     

THE EFFECTIVENESS OF FUNGUS GNATS AS POLLINATORS

Fungus gnats (Sciaridae and Mycetophilidae) are the principal pollinators of Listera cordata (L.) R. Br. (Orchidaceae) and Scoliopus bigelovii Torr. (Liliaceae) in coastal redwood forests of northern California. Although primitive diptera have generally been regarded as relatively inefficient pollinators, fruit set for both species is high: 61–78% for L. cordata (1976–1978) and 94.3–98.5% for S. bigelovii (1978–1979). Since probability of pollination per visit is low, we attribute high fruit set to the large number of gnats present at our study sites and corresponding large number of visits to flowers. The relative frequency of geitonogamous vs. xenogamous pollen flow was estimated by emasculating flowers and subsequently comparing pollen reception or fruit set of emasculates with controls. Results for both species indicate that interplant movement of pollen is common. Thus, fungus gnats can be effective pollen vectors, both in terms of overall fruit set and potential for cross-pollination.     

培菌白蚁与鸡枞菌研究进展

培菌白蚁起源于非洲,蚁巢内具有复杂的社会分工.培菌白蚁依靠独特的蚁巢结构维持内部稳态和气体循环.菌圃是白蚁培育鸡枞菌的场所.鸡枞菌隶属于担子菌亚门,但其传播方式和生活史具有区别于其它担子菌的特点.鸡枞菌协助白蚁进行植物纤维的消化,白蚁则为鸡枞菌提供合适的生长环境,并控制鸡枞菌的遗传结构.培菌白蚁和鸡枞菌形成紧密的共生关...     

Glowworms: a review of Arachnocampa spp. and kin.

The term 'glowworm' is used in connection with the flightless females of lampyrid fireflies and to describe the luminescent larvae of certain fungus gnats that belong to the subfamilies Arachnocampinae, Keroplatinae and Macrocerinae of the dipteran family Keroplatidae. This review focuses on the luminescent larval fungus gnats. The weakly luminescent species of the Holarctic feed mainly on fungal spores, but some, such as Orfelia fultoni, have turned to a carnivorous diet. Larval Australian and New Zealand Arachnocampa spp. produce brighter in vivo (but not necessarily in vitro) lights, live in cool, damp and dark places and are exclusively predatory. They lure their prey (usually small flying insects) with the help of their blue-green light emissions towards snares consisting of vertical silk threads coated with sticky mucus droplets. Fungus gnats with similar 'fishing lines' are found in the Neotropics, but they are not luminescent. The larval stage is longest in the life cycle of Arachnocampa, lasting up to a year, depending on climatic conditions such as temperature and humidity as well as food supply. In A. luminosa, but not the Australian A. flava, female pupae and even female imagines are luminescent. However, it remains to be demonstrated whether it is the light of the female, a pheromone or both that attract the males. Light organs and the chemical reactions to produce light differ between the holarctic and the Australian/New Zealand species. Prey is attracted only by the glowworm's light; odours of the fishing lines or the glowworms themselves are not involved. Recognition of the prey by the glowworm involves mechano- and chemoreception. The eyes of both larval and adult glowworms are large and functional over a spectral range covering UV to green wavelengths. Adults are poor fliers, live only for a few days, have degenerate mouth parts and do not feed. Maintenance of glowworms in captivity is possible and the impact of tourism on glowworms in natural settings can be minimized through appropriate precautions.     

Workability and productivity of robotic plug transplanting workcell

Summary Transplanting is a necessary operation in transplant production systems. Transplanting operation is labor-intensive and automation can reduce labor costs. Plugs are actively growing young transplants with two well-defined morphologic parts: the stem-leaf portion and the root-growth medium portion. They may be grown in regularly situated cells on traylike containers. This regularity makes plugs suitable for automated transplanting operations. It is, therefore, beneficial for in vitro plant propagation systems to include plugs as intermediate products before they are delivered to the greenhouses. Flexible automation and robotics technologies have been applied to develop a robotic workcell for transplanting plugs from plug trays to growing flats. Main components of the workcell include a robot, an end-effector, and two conveyer belts for transporting trays and flats. The end-effector for extracting, holding, and planting plugs is a “sliding-needles-with-sensor” gripper. The sensor signals the robot to complete a transplanting cycle only when a plug is properly held by the gripper. Systems analysis and computer simulation were conducted to study factors affecting workability and productivity of various workcell designs. These factors included: dimensions and kinematics of the robot and its peripheral equipment, layout and materials flow, fullness of plug trays, and successful extraction rate of plugs. The analysis also indicated that machine vision systems could add valuable capabilities to the workcell, such as robot guidance and plug quality evaluation. Engineering economic analysis was performed to investigate the interaction of workcell technical feasibility and economic viability. Presented in the Session-in-Depth Robotics in Tissue Culture at the 1991 World Congress on Cell and Tissue Culture, Anaheim, California, June 16–20, 1991.     

Pollination by fungus gnats in four species of the genus Mitella (Saxifragaceae)

The first example of pollination by fungus gnats in the eudicots is reported. The genus Mitella (Saxifragales) is characteristically produces minute, inconspicuous, mostly dull-coloured flowers with linear, sometimes pinnately branched, petals. To understand the function of these characteristic flowers, we studied the pollination biology of four Mitella species with different floral traits and different sexual expression: dioecious M. acerina , gynodioecious M. furusei var. subramosa , and hermaphroditic M. stylosa var. makinoi and M. integripetala. Flower-bagging experiments showed that wind pollination did not occur in the dioecious and gynodioecious species. Two years of observations of flower visitors at six study sites in Japan revealed that the principal pollinators of all four Mitella were specific species of fungus gnats (Mycetophilidae), which landed on the flowers with their long spiny legs settling on the petals. Characteristically, numerous pollen grains were attached to the fungus gnats in specific locations on the body. Although, on average, 1.3–2.6 fungus gnats visited each inflorescence per day, the fruit set of both bisexual and female flowers exceeded 63%. These results suggest that fungus gnats are highly efficient pollinators of Mitella spp., and that Mitella flowers are morphologically adapted to pollination by fungus gnats.  © 2004 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society , 2004, 144 , 449–460.     

Tomato sap flow, stem and fruit growth in relation to water availability in rockwool growing medium

Background and aims

Irrigation strategies for glasshouse tomato are often based on solar radiation sums. However, due to new energy-saving climate control, current strategies might result in inappropriate irrigation. Because of the limited water buffering capacity of soilless growing media like rockwool, this could have adverse effects on fruit production and quality. We present an overview of tomato plant ecophysiological responses to substrate water availability to allow the evaluation of mechanistic hypotheses about internal plant water storage and depletion and reversible stem-fruit water transport.

Methods

The hydraulic properties of the growing medium were determined and plant water uptake, stem and fruit diameter variations were studied.

Results

A low substrate matric suction (?2 to ?3?kPa) had a significant effect on stem and fruit growth dynamics. The substrate water retention curve indicated a sharp decrease in hydraulic conductivity, limiting the water availability for plant roots significantly.

Conclusions

The hydraulic properties of the growing medium are of utmost importance for plant water uptake, and should therefore be incorporated in plant models describing water flow. Internally stored water responds instantaneously to varying water availability and rates of water backflow from tomato fruits can be quite substantial.