Simulation of the Development of Tomato in Greenhouse

A simulation model for tomato development in greenhouse was developed based on the concept of physiological development time (PDT) and the photo-thermal reactions of tomato in greenhouse. The model was validated by independent experimental data from Shanghai and Nanjing. The results showed that the simulated results agreed well with the measured ones. The root mean squared error (RMSE) for germination, seedling, flowering, fruit setting, and harvest development stages was 0, 1, 1.87, 2.69 and 3 days, respectively. The prediction accuracy of this model is remarkably higher than that of the Growth Degree Day (GDD) based model (RMSE is 0, 7.91, 8.86, 13.58 and 12.59 days, respectively, for germination, seedling, flowering, fruit setting, and harvest development stages).