The paper deals with the effect of pre-winter sowing on earliness and yield of spinach. Sowing was conducted late in the autumn (November-December), i.e. before harsh frosts. Spring sowing served as the control. It was established that pre-winter sowing significantly increased the earliness of spinach and decreased its yield. Due to favorable effect on earliness, pre-winter sowing should be applied in the production of this vegetable. Early spinach is a commodity which is highly requested on the market and is placed on the market at a high price.

Tomato investigations were carried out under greenhouse and field conditions. The aim was to determine the extent to which greenhouse conditions influence the chemical composition of tomato fruits. Plants grown under field conditions were used as the control. Tomato trials were performed during different periods. Greenhouse trials were carried out in the winter and the spring period (January-June), and field trials in the spring and the summer period (May-September). Zinc (Zn), iron (Fe) and copper (Cu) content was established in ripe tomato fruits.