Hybrid Seed Production in Tomato
摘要
Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) is one of the important vegetable crops grown extensively in the tropical and subtropical belts of the world. It is grown mainly for its fresh fruits and for its value-added products including soups, juice, ketchup, puree, paste, and powder. Vitamins A and C, minerals, antioxidants (mostly lycopene and beta-carotene), and other substances including flavonoids and derivatives of hydroxycinnamic acid can all be found in abundance in tomatoes. Strong antioxidant lycopene helps to prevent cancer. Due to health benefits and economic importance, there has been increased demand for improving tomato productivity word over. Use of quality seeds is one of the most important components in any successful production system. In this chapter, we have discussed various aspects like, climate, soil requirements, and agronomic practices required to grow a good tomato crop for quality seed production. More importantly, different steps involved in seed production of open-pollinated varieties and hybrid seed production along with minimum seed standards to be met for quality seed were presented. Finally, plant protection strategies that should be used to ward off various insects, including root-knot nematode and diseases that can hinder the growth of tomato crop during seed production, were also discussed.