Relationship between Chlorophylls and Carotenoids of Ripening Tomato Fruit as Influenced by Potassium Nutrition

Abstract

Studies of fruit pigmentation at various stages of ripening showed that the chlorophylls generally decreased as the total carotenoids increase during ripening. At any stage of ripening, the carotenoid content of K-deficient fruit was lower than that of normal fruit. The relationship between the two pigment systems was altered by the K. status of the fruit. When the rate of carotenogenesis was low (green and red stages), the chlorophylls were higher in high K-fruit than in K-deficient fruit. When the rate of carotenoid synthesis was rapid (breaker to light red stages), the chlorophyll level of K-deficient fruit was higher than that of normal fruit.