The behavior of the ‘Romec 554j’ tomato genotype (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) on the sandy soils of SCDCPN Dăbuleni

L.M. Sfîrloagă, Ș. Nanu, A. Diaconu, F. Frătuțu, D.M. Ilina
Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) is one of the most important vegetable species, due to its particularly high nutritional value. The success of tomato cultivation is conditioned by many factors, but the cultivar (variety/hybrid) has an essential role. In this sense, at the Research-Development Station for Plant Culture on Sands Dăbuleni research was carried out on the variability of the main quantitative characters in the tomato genotype ‘Romec 554j’, in the period 2021-2023. Fruit weight (g), fruit diameter (cm), pericarp thickness (mm) and soluble dry matter were analyzed. The research results were influenced by the climatic conditions of each study year. The biometric registered data were statistically processed with the program Data Analysis, calculating for each analyzed character the mean (x̄), the standard deviation (s), the coefficient of variability (s%), the range of variability (k = x̄ ± s). The calculation and analysis of variability revealed, on average, over the three years of the study, a small coefficient of variability for fruit diameter (s%=7.38;) and a medium one for fruit weight (s%=14.95); pericarp thickness (s%=13.34); soluble dry matter (s%=12.64). Although the tomato genotype ‘Romec 554j’ is a stable cultivar, from the point of view of genetic integrity and biological purity, the current climatic conditions are increasingly leaving their mark on the quantitative characteristics. The values of the calculated statistical indices of the studied characters impose the continuation of the conservative selection process in order to maintain them within the limits of variability specific to the tomato genotype ‘Romec 554j’.
Sfîrloagă, L.M., Nanu, Ș., Diaconu, A., Frătuțu, F. and Ilina, D.M. (2025). The behavior of the ‘Romec 554j’ tomato genotype (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) on the sandy soils of SCDCPN Dăbuleni. Acta Hortic. 1416, 239-244
DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2025.1416.31
https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2025.1416.31
conservative selection, coefficient of variability, quantitative characteristics, open field
English

Acta Horticulturae