Otitoloju Kekere , Tofunmi Hepzibah Oyetunde , Joseph Kolade Afolabi

Department of Plant Science & Biotechnology, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko, Ondo State, Nigeria
Author    Correspondence author
Bioscience Methods, 2026, Vol. 17, No. 3   
Received: 01 Apr., 2026    Accepted: 21 Apr., 2026    Published: 11 May, 2026

This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Water availability is a major limiting factor for tomato production, particularly under changing climate conditions. This study investigated the effects of eight watering regimes twice daily (T1), once daily (T2), every 2 days (T3), every 3 days (T4), every 4 days (T5), every 5 days (T6), every 6 days (T7), and continuous waterlogging (T8) on growth, yield, and fruit nutritional quality of two Nigerian tomato genotypes (Hortitom 1 and Hortitom 3) under screenhouse conditions. The experiment was laid out in a 2 × 8 factorial arrangement in a completely randomized design with five replicates. Both genotypes exhibited 100% survival under all non-waterlogged treatments, while continuous waterlogging (T8) resulted in 100% mortality. Hortitom 1 and Hortitom 3 attained their maximum plant height at T5 (watering every 4 days), recording 58.70 cm and 62.50 cm respectively. Fruit yield (fresh weight) was highest in Hortitom 1 under T1 (5.25 g per fruit) and in Hortitom 3 under T7 (7.75 g per fruit). Nutritional composition was significantly influenced by genotype and watering regime. Crude protein content peaked at 2.06% in Hortitom 1 under T5 and 1.85% in Hortitom 3 under T4. These results demonstrate clear genotypic differences in response to water availability. Hortitom 1 performed best under moderate water stress (T5) for vegetative growth and nutritional quality, while Hortitom 3 showed superior fruit yield under more severe water restriction (T7). Both genotypes are highly susceptible to waterlogging but tolerant to drought. The findings provide genotype-specific irrigation recommendations that can enhance water-use efficiency while maintaining or improving fruit nutritional quality in tomato production under screenhouse conditions.

Drought; Waterlogging; Tomato genotypes; Growth; Nutritional quality; Solanum lycopersicum