Relation of Earliness to Some Plant Characters in the Tomato

Abstract

An experiment was conducted to determine the association of certain characters with earliness in the tomato, at the Isabela Agricultural Experiment Substation. Four varieties were included in this study, namely: Earliana, first early; Valiant, second early; Queens, midseason; and Rutgers, late. The information recorded was as follows: 1, Leaf production at weekly intervals; 2, node number at which the first consecutive four-flower clusters appeared on the main stem; 3, percentage of the first four flowering lateral branches originating four leaves below or above the position of the first flower cluster on the main stem; 4, fresh and dry weights of five mature tomato leaves per plant collected from the first and the last plant in each replication; 5, fresh and dry weights of each whole tomato plant that was planted at the beginning and at the end of each replicate; 6, stem diameter two leaves below the first inflorescence; and 7, yield measured in terms of total number and weight of fruits produced. The results of this experiment strongly indicate that earliness is associated with the following characters: 1. High rate of leaf production, i.e., an early variety producing more leaves per unit of time than a late one. 2. Small number of leaves from the cotyledons to the position of the first inflorescence on the main stem. 3. A relatively large number of leaves from the first to the second, and from the second to the third inflorescences on the main stem. 4. Concentration of the first four flowering branches within a relatively small zone on the main stem, a few leaves below or above the position of the first inflorescence. 5. Relatively thin stem. 6. Relatively small leaves.