Agronomic and biomass evaluation in Mexican tomato landraces grown under greenhouse conditions

Intensive tomato production (Solanum lycopersicum L.) requires knowing the effect of biomass accumulation on plant growth to optimize the production process. Four Mexican tomato landraces and one commercial hybrid were evaluated under greenhouse conditions. Agronomic parameters such as plant height, stem diameter, number of leaves, leaf area, total number of fruits, average weight and fruit yield, were determined. The accumulation of total biomass and its partitioning was monitored through dry weight of root, stem, leaves and fruits. Analysis of variance showed significant differences (P?0.5) for all the parameters among the populations. The results showed a yield response from 2.46 to 5.90 kg plant-1 and a biomass accumulation of 498 g plant-1 in the commercial hybrid, followed by landrace 'Oaxaca' (434 g plant-1), 'Puebla' (379 g plant-1), 'Estado de México' (294 g plant-1) and 'Campeche' (250 g plant-1). Biomass distribution presented a similar trend in all populations with the following allocation: fruit > leaves > stem > root. Although the Mexican landraces had a lower yield and biomass accumulation, further analysis should be done to establish fruit quality attributes that could be used as a criterion for gene donation in the development of potential hybrids for both the fresh and processing market.