New tomato hybrids named after sexy stars

COLLEGE, Los Baños, Laguna – Tomatoes may seem less than an appropriate crop but four new hybrid varieties of the plumb, luscious vegetable mainstay unveiled here last week have been named after Filipina actresses associated with sexy films.

Nevertheless, meet "Ara," "Rosanna," "Assunta," and "Rica" of the solanaceous plant family – four of the new hybrid tomato varieties which made their debut during the 27th foundation anniversary celebration of the UP Los Baños Institute of Plant Breeding (IPB) led by its director Dr. Desiree Hautea.

The "sexy star" series of tomatoes, bred the conventional way by IPB scientists, were among the new plant varieties released last week and approved for commercialization by the Germplasm Registration and Release Office (GRRO).

According to Hautea, the new tomato hybrids can be described as "bold" commodities since they can thrive in all seasons, dry or wet, like their human "bold star" counterparts. The new varieties are resistant to certain diseases and can yield more fruits than other varieties. "Besides, they are fleshly and tasty," Haute added.

The four varieties and their characteristics are the following:

XTH 6137 (Assunta)

• Yield: 20-30 tons/ ha. (wet season); 40-60 tons/ha. (dry season)

• Maturity: harvested 59-62 days after transplanting

• Fruits: small to medium size, plum shape, red orange when ripe

• Semi-indeterminate, vigorous, prolific

• Resistant to bacterial wilt and foliage diseases

• Heat tolerant

• Can be grown during off-season

XTH 6137 (Ara)

• Yield: 20-30 tons/ha. (wet season); 40-60 tons/ha. (dry season)

• Maturity: harvested 60-63 days after transplanting

• Fruits: small to medium size, high round shape, red orange when ripe, moderately firm

• Semi-indeterminate, very vigorous, very prolific

• Resistant to bacterial wilt and foliage diseases

TM L 95-03 (Rosanna)

• Yield: 10-15 tons/ ha. (wet season); 20-30 tons/ha. (dry season)

• Maturity: harvested 57-60 days after transplanting

• Fruits: small to medium size, high round shape, red orange when ripe, moderately firm

• Determinate, moderately vigorous, prolific

• Resistant to bacterial wilt and foliage diseases

• Heat tolerant

• Performs well during off-season

TM L 95-12 (Rica)

• Open pollinated

• Yield: 10-15 tons/ha. (wet season); 20-30 tons/ha. (dry season)

• Maturity: harvested 57-60 days after transplanting

• Fruits: small to medium size, high round shape, red orange when ripe, moderately firm

• Determinate, moderately vigorous, prolific

• Resistant to bacterial wilt and foliage diseases

• Heat tolerant

• Performs well during off-season

Apart from the tomatoes, IPB has also bred several varieties of corn, mungbean, cassava and sweet potato, cucumber, garden pea and bush snap bean.

New gumamela (hibiscus) varieties dubbed "celebrity star series" have also been developed and are expected to be released shortly. Earlier, IPB scientists produced several other gumamela hybrids called "centennial" and named after various Philippines heroines.

The IBP was recognized three years ago for having bred the highly-popular "sinta," the first hybrid papaya resistant to the papaya ring spot virus, a disease which had devastated papaya plantations in Luzon.

Perhaps, IPB plant breeders after their successful tomato venture, may soon produce new papaya or watermelon varieties and call them by the name of other popular Filipina film bombshells. This time, these won’t be a misnomer.