Articles
BREEDING VEGETABLE VARIETIES FOR ADAPTATION TO GREENHOUSE PRODUCTION
In each location, conditions vary enormously during the growing season and changes can occur very rapidly.
Therefore, it is necessary to breed varieties not having a too narrow adaptation to climatic conditions.
Breeders are considering 3 main aspects: poor light conditions, low temperatures in the early stage of the growing season, high temperatures in the late stage of the production.
Genotypes are usually choosen after several trials in greenhouse.
Efficiency of selection would be increased if the breeders could use simple methods for measuring the different responses of the plant to the different climatic conditions.
Tests must be easy to practice rapidly on a large number of genotypes, without destruction of the plant, if possible at an early stage.
Tomato improvment shows the many characters which have to be taken into consideration by the breeders in order to get varieties which can give the highest returns for all the investments made in the greenhouse cultivation.