BREEDING NEW F₁ TOMATO HYBRIDS OF RIN GENOTYPE

Serbian local tomato market prefers big fruit weight 200 gr., and long shelf life. Slow ripening and long shelf-life of tomato fruits are traits controlled by several ripening inhibitor genes (nor-non ripening, nr- never ripe, rin-ripening inhibitor, alc-alcobaca) and other. In our tomato breeding programs the rin mutations are used to enhance the shelf-life of tomato fruits in commercial practice. Fruits of these genotypes ripe slowly, have a shelf life of 2 -3 weeks and at the same time have relatively good colour, firmness and taste. Maternal parental lines had been of rin/rin, and paternal parental lines of rin⁺/rin⁺ genetic constitutions The best practical results had the combinations of rin/rin⁺ genotype. The results are new tomato hybrids: Nada F₁, Sampion F₁, Sef F₁, Sidra F₁ and Rebus F₁ of rin/rin⁺ genotype. In these F₁ hybrids shelf life was from 18 to 30 days. This period is satisfactory for market needs and is much better than in commercial grown hybrids Balkan F₁ and Marco F₁ (5 and 8 days, respectively). These hybrids have sp⁺ plant (except, Rebus F₁ have: sp plant), very firm fruits with deep red color, average fruit weight from abot 190 to more than 220 g, and good deseases resistance (VFN or VTm-2²). Maturity is from early (Sef F₁, Rebus F₁), medium early (Nada F₁, Sidra F₁) and medium late (Sampion F₁). It was observed the decrease of content of total acids and lycopene in heterozygote rin/rin⁺ F₁ tomato hybrids, but that was not statistically significant. There was no statistical difference between the hybrids and lines regarding the chemical compound except for the lycopene content. Maternal components of hybrids (rin/rin genotypes) had low level of lycopene (from 6.0 to 6.8 mg/100 g FM) comparing to all hybrids where their level has been significantly higher (from 13.2 to 22.4 mg /100 g FM).