ESTIMATION OF GENETIC COMPONENTS AND HETEROSIS FOR NURSERY TRAITS IN TOMATO HYBRIDS (SOLANUM ESCULENTUM, MILL)

Heritable variation is the basis of plant improvement via selection for quantitative traits, including those contributing to yield. The present study was initiated to estimate heritable variation and the genetic components of agronomically important traits in tomato. Seeds of 13 parental lines and 24 hybrids along with two commercial varieties (Jury and Saahil) were planted in a walking tunnel. There were highly significant differences among the experimental material for all traits excluding dry root and shoot weight and seedling water content, indicating sufficient genetic variability for majority of the traits in this panel of tomato germplasm for genetic gain via selection. Nevertheless, higher phenotypic than genotypic coefficients of variability were observed for all traits under study. Higher heritability estimates associated with higher genetic advance were observed for fresh root weight, while lower values of both heritability and genetic advance were observed for shoot length. A range of heterosis values was observed for all traits in the crosses. The findings revealed the exploitation of heterosis for improving the hybrid vigor of seedling traits.