Agronomic performance of native tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) populations, grown under two growing sistems.: Agronomic quality of tomato in two environments

Abstract

The environmental diversity of Mexico has allowed the development of different wild and cultivated forms of tomato  whose fruits are marketed locally and regionally in different states of the country. This work was carried out with the objective of evaluating the agronomic quality of 23 native tomato populations from Mexico and two commercial ones as a control, established under greenhouse and open field conditions. This research was carried out at the Colegio de Postgraduados, Campus Montecillo, Texcoco, State of Mexico, from February to June 2018. Native tomato populations were obtained from central and southern Mexico; where agronomic variables and fruit quality were evaluated. The results show that the tomato populations were more affected by the variety factor, in the variables: number of fruits, polar and equatorial diameter, and number of locules; the environment produced the greatest effect on: plant height, number of leaves, fruit weight, yield and pericarp thickness. The interaction of variety by environment affected the number of fruits in greater proportion. It should be noted that protected and field conditions, the native genotype G3 generated the highest yield, with 4.4 kg/plant in the greenhouse and 2.8 kg/plant in the field. The average yield in the greenhouse was 131% higher, compared to that in the open field. The conclusion shows that the protected environmental conditions show that the tomato varieties increase the yield and the agronomic characteristics and quality of the fruits