Morphologic Features of Lusterless Tomato Fruit Occurring in Southern Hokkaido, Japan and its Discrimination Method

Abstract

We examined the morphological features of lusterless tomato fruit occurring in southern Hokkaido, Japan and its discrimination method. A light was diffused on the epicarp of lusterless fruit in the dark. While sections of the epicarp surface of normal fruit were smooth when observed under a microscope (×100), those of the lusterless fruit were rough. Polygonal cells were observed on the surface of the normal fruit epicarp by the SUMP method (×100). Additionally, cracks were seen on the surface of the lusterless fruit. We believe that the cracks form the rough epicarp, diffusing light when irradiated, and cause the loss of luster as well as the rough texture. The water content of the lusterless fruit was less than that of normal fruit after harvest, and lusterless fruit had an inferior shelf life.