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Seminar: Katie Learn: Evaluating Heirloom-type Tomato Genotypes for Organic and Conventional Production Systems

December 7, 2022 | 11:00 am - 12:00 pm

Evaluating Heirloom-type Tomato Genotypes for Organic and Conventional Production Systems
Katie Learn, MHS-DE Exit Seminar
Under the direction of Dr. Jeanine Davis, Dr. Dilip Panthee, and Dr. Penelope Perkins-Veazie
Wednesday, December 7th, 2022 at 11:00 am

Join Zoom Meeting: https://ncsu.zoom.us/j/99785889167?pwd=YWtLaUc0WDF6UlJFYm9uRXBqL0RQZz09
Meeting ID: 997 8588 9167
Passcode: 751234

Abstract:
Heirloom tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum L.) are highly sought after for their flavor, color, shape, and historical significance. Heirloom tomatoes typically have low disease resistance, often producing less yield per acre than modern hybrid tomatoes. This project utilized a combination of eight heirloom-type and conventional hybrid tomato varieties developed by crossing tomato breeding lines with disease resistance and heirloom varieties to produce higher yielding, more disease resistant tomatoes with heirloom qualities. These hybrids were evaluated at three organic locations and three conventional locations across western North Carolina with 3 replications in the summer of 2021 and 2022.

In these trials, growth, fruit quality, and yield performance attributes of heirloom-type hybrid tomato varieties were compared between conventional and organic production systems and across varieties. Data for disease incidence, disease development, tissue nutrient analysis, presence of crimson gene, foliage density, fruit size, and fruit shape were collected. Composition, consisting of total phenolic content, soluble solid content (SSC), lycopene content, pH, and titratable acidity (TA), was determined for fruit from organic and conventional trials.

No statistical differences in yield or post-harvest quality parameters or composition parameters were found between the production systems. Only the nutrients potassium and manganese showed statistical difference between production systems. In contrast, the essential plant nutrients nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, sulfur, zinc, and boron showed differences among varieties. Tomato varieties also differed statistically in marketable number and unmarketable weight of fruit and in SSC, acidity, TA, and lycopene content.

With these heirloom-type and conventional hybrids, production system had little effect on yield, post-harvest quality, and leaf nutrient content. The greater determining factor of quality and leaf nutrient content was genotype. It would be of interest to determine how cost analysis, soil sampling, and pesticide residual would contribute to future studies. Several of these new tomato genotypes show promise for new varieties for the western North Carolina market.

Details

Date:
December 7, 2022
Time:
11:00 am - 12:00 pm
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