Dataset on the effects of spacing and fruit truss limitation on the growth, yield and quality of open-field tomato plants

This article presents data on the effects of spacing and fruit truss limitation on tomato plant growth, yield and fruit quality. Plants with two, three, and four fruit trusses (T1-T3) were grown in four different spaces (S1-S4) to create 12 treatments. The experiment was conducted on an open field with a randomized complete block design and three replications. Data on fruit quantity, weight, and yield were collected to assess the effects of plant density and fruit truss limitation on tomato fruit produced and marketable fruit produced. This data could help develop a strategy for breeding new tomato cultivars for high density planting on the rice-based rotational crop systems in the Red River Delta of Vietnam and other similar sub-tropical regions.


Specification
Value of the data -The dataset illustrates the effects of growing density and fruit truss limitation on plant growth, yield components, and fruit quality of tomato on the open field. -The data could be valuable for researchers studying rotational crop production systems. This dataset also includes data on tomato fruit yield harvested after only two weeks. This significantly shortens the total growing duration and enables tomatoes to be grown in different rotational crop systems with time-limited land resources. -The data also provides a strategy for breeding new tomato cultivars suitable for very high density growing. These cultivars should have short stem, condensed flower truss, a short ripening duration, and simple leaves. These cultivars could be grown in time-limited lands to increase benefits for farmers by reducing labor and material cost while increasing marketable fruit yield. -The data supports the rotation of tomato cultivars into a rice-based rotational system between rice seasons in the Red River Delta of Vietnam and similar areas. Tomato rotation should occur during the winter season separating the two main winter seasons, as this season offers cooler temperature, fewer pests and lower rate of diseases. Fig. 1 presents the environmental data on temperature and humidity during 13 weeks following transplantation of tomato plants. Table 1 presents data on plant height, leaf number and fruit set for each treatment group. The raw data for Table 1 is presented in the Supplementary file "Plant structure and fruit set" Data on fruit quantity, fruit weight, and fruit yield were collected to assess the effect of spacing ( Table 2 ), fruit truss limitation ( Table 3 ), and the combination of spacing and fruit truss limitation ( Table 4 ) on total fruit yield and marketable fruit. Table 5 presents the contribution  Table 1 Effects of spacing and truss limitation on plant structure and fruit set. The data were presented as mean values ± se. Different letters within columns represent statistically significant differences (Tukeys's honest significant difference test, P < 0.05).   The data for total yield (blue columns) and marketable yield (red columns) are detailed in Table 4 ; marketable yield harvested after two weeks (green columns) is presented in Table 6 . Different letters within a group (by color) represent statistically significant differences (Tukeys's honest significant difference test, P < 0.05).

Effects of spacing and truss limitation on plant growth, fruit set, fruit yield, and fruit characteristics
of each fruit truss to total fruit yield and marketable fruit yield. Table 6 shows the effects of spacing and truss limitation on marketable fruit yield harvested in two weeks. Fig. 2 compares the interaction effects of plant spacing and truss limitation on total fruit yield, marketable fruit yield, and marketable fruit yield harvested after two weeks. The raw data for Table 2 , Table 3 ,  Table 4 , Table 5 , and Table 6 is presented in the Supplementary file "Yield components".   Table 7 Effects of spacing and truss limitation on fruit morphology and quality. The data were presented as mean values ± se. Different letters within columns represent significant differences (Tukeys's honest significant difference test, P < 0.05).   Table 7 presents effects of treatments on fruit morphology (fruit shape index, number of locules, pericarp thickness, and number of seeds per fruit) and fruit quality ( 0 BRIX). The raw data for Table 7 is presented in the Supplementary file "Fruit morphology and quality".  Table 8 presents data on spacing and fruit truss limitation. Figure 3 illustrates truss limitation and plan morphology for treatment groups.

Plant materials and cultivation
The hybrid tomato cultivar VNS585 was provided by Southern Seed Corporation, Vietnam. Seeds were sown on nursery beds inside a net house on 15 October 2019. The 30-day old seedlings were transplanted to the experimental open field. The field was located at the High-Quality Vegetable Research and Development Center (HVRDC) of the Vietnam National University of Agriculture in Hanoi. All agricultural practices related to this experiment, including field cultivation, seedling transplantation, fertilization, irrigation, and other standard agricultural practices were consistent with methods described in Srinivasan's Safer tomato production techniques [1] .

Experimental design
Twelve treatments were created using four growing spaces and three variations on plant truss (from S1T1 to S4T3). Each plot consisted of two 5-m-long double-rows spaced 1m apart. The 12 plots were grouped in a randomized complete block design with three replications. The details of each treatment are referenced from previous studies [ 2 , 3 ] and appear in Table 8 . The highest plant density was 66.700 plant/ha with spacing of 40 × 30 cm (row x plant).

Fruit truss limitation practice
Plants were limited to either 2, 3, or 4 fruit trusses. The lateral branches from the base to immediately below the first flower were removed on all plants. The two main shoots were preserved on all plants, each shoot carrying the number of fruit trusses as indicated in Fig. 3 . On all plats, two leaves were maintained above the highest fruit truss [2] .