Stability and breeding potential of tomato hybrids.

Commercial tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) hybrids can be a good germplasm for obtaining new tomato inbred lines. The present study was aimed to investigate the stability of commercial F1 hybrids under climatic conditions of highlands, to estimate genetic parameters, and evaluate the breeding potential of F1 hybrids based on the agronomic performance of its F3 progeny. We employed a breeding scheme based on pedigree selection for the obtainment of 49 F3 families. Significant differences were found in most of the traits evaluated in both F1 and F3 generations, while in the F2 population only one variable showed significant differences. Heritability ranged from 0.07 to 0.29 for F1, and from 0.16 to 0.45 for F3. Most of the F1 hybrids exhibited values of stability across seasons in at least one trait. However, 'Loreto' and 'Reserva' only exhibited a high stability for yield. Genetic gains ranged from -8.40 to 72.95. Yield per plant was the traits with the highest gain. Based on genetic gains obtained by the F3 progeny, we concluded that 'Cid', 'Espartaco' and 'Loreto' have a high breeding potential for yield and other traits, which could be exploited by public tomato breeding programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]