Caracterização e seleção de variedades de tomateiro visando o sistema orgânico a campo e em ambiente protegido

Abstract

Organic tomato production is currently expanding, driven by consumer’s concern and search for healthier, quality products with a low health risk. However, tomato production under these principles constitutes a major challenge for farmers, given the high amount of pests and diseases and the lack of available genotypes with high production potentials and superior fruit quality, which are adapted to agroecological principles, such as edaphoclimatic conditions in southwestern Paraná and as different cultivation conditions. A possible genetic variability source to meet these demands can be found in the traditional non-hybrid varieties. With that, the work's objective was to characterize the morpho-agronomic diversity of creole and ancient varieties of tomatoes in the greenhouse and open field utilizing standardized descriptors, agronomic, and fruit quality characters. The work was carried out in the campus facilities (greenhouse) and at UTFPR Pato Branco experimental area (open field) in a randomized block design with four replications and eight plants per plot. Nine varieties of tomato from the Santa Cruz, salad, and salad groups were evaluated using 39 qualitative and quantitative fruit, plant, and agronomic descriptors through measurements, rating scales, and physico-chemical analysis. Agronomic and fruit quality data were subjected to joint variance analysis of experiments and Scott-Knott mean cluster test (p<0.05) and general data to multivariate analysis of principal components. The joint variance analysis showed significant differences for the effect of genotype, environment and interaction for agronomic characters, and for the fruit quality characters there was no significance for the effect of cultivation environment, except for exceptions. Varieties grown in greenhouses showed generally higher values for most agronomic and fruit quality traits, with some exceptions. The reduced values of agronomic characters in the open field were caused by losses due to physiological and phytosanitary problems aggravated by the ecological imbalance seen in this environment. The Jumbo, Kada Gigante, and Santa Clara varieties presented morpho-agronomic and fruit quality characteristics that list them to be cultivated in both environments or just in the open field. The Gaucho Marmande variety is especially indicated for cultivation in the open field, mainly for its vegetative characteristics, as long as it is implanted in environments with a certain ecological balance. The other varieties are recommended to be grown in a greenhouse.