Hazan, Amram; Gantz, Sheli; Avidan, Albert; Posalski, Itzhak

The main goal of this research was to investigate the effects of wet pad-and-fan Evaporative Cooling System (ECS) on the incidence of Blossom End Rot (BER) and fruit cracking of greenhouse grown bell pepper (Capsicum annuum L. ). The specific objectives were to study the efficiency of the wet pad-and-fan ECS on ( I ) improving plant water status and reducing transpiration, and ( II) to explore the impact of these conditions on fruit yield and on the incidence of BER and fruit cracking. Pepper was grown in the Lachish region, Israel, in a greenhouse divided to two compartments, one with a pad-and-fan ECS and a control compartment. The results show that the ECS increased the total fruit yield and the incidence of cracked fruits, but reduced the incidence of BER. The efficiency of the ECS in reducing temperature and the relative humidity decreased as a function of the distance from the wet pad. Consequently, the incidence of cracked fruits decreased with distance from the wet pad, whereas the incidence of BER increased.