Understanding and improving water-use efficiency and drought resistance in tomato

Publication date: 31/03/2017
Extent: 26 pages

Contributions by: Agustin Zsogon, University Fedefrale de Vicosa, Brazil

Chapter synopsis: The tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) is both a well-established genetic model for plant biology and a horticultural cash crop of increasing importance to human nutrition. Tomato is mainly cultivated under irrigated conditions, so water use is of considerable significance for healthy plant growth and adequate yield. This chapter reviews recent advances in tomato physiology, with particular emphasis on the promising convergence between developmental physiology and water relations. It also endeavours to integrate recent findings with selected earlier studies, and includes a case study of the potential of the wild species Solanum pennellii as a source of drought-resistance for cultivated tomatoes.

DOI: 10.19103/AS.2016.0007.01