Selection of F₂RC₁ saladette-type dwarf tomato plant populations for fruit quality and whitefly resistance¹

Seleção de populações F₂RC₁ de tomateiro anão do tipo saladete para desenvolvimento de linhagens

HIGHLIGHTS:

A backcross promoted recovery of recurrent parent characteristics in dwarf tomato plant popula-tions.

Internodes of F₂RC₁ saladette-type dwarf tomato plants were four fold smaller than those of normal plants.

Selection indices were efficient in selecting dwarf tomato plant populations with potential for the saladette segment.

ABSTRACT

This study aimed to select promising F2RC1 populations of saladette-type dwarf tomato plants for the development of breeding lines based on agronomic characteristics, fruit quality, and whitefly resistance. The experimental design was randomized blocks containing 13 treatments (10 F₂RC₁ populations of dwarf tomato plants, both parents, and a commercial hybrid) with four replicates. The evaluations were performed included weight, length, diameter, shape, pulp thickness, number of locules, soluble solids, β-carotene, and lycopene concentration of the fruit; plant internode length; acylsugars concentration; and number of whitefly eggs, nymphs, and adults on the leaflets. The data were analyzed using ANOVA, selection indices, and multivariate analysis. The first backcross increased the agronomic characteristics of the populations in relation to the donor parent, especially for fruit weight (169.1%), fruit length (26.1%), and fruit diameter (16.6%). The UFU SDi 7, UFU SDi 9, and UFU-SDi 17 populations were selected using two selection indices and were therefore considered promising.

Key words:
Solanum lycopersicum; dwarfism; backcrossing; plant breeding