Abstract
The relationship between fruit skin coloration under the calyx and differences in fruit skin coloration under common and near ultraviolet ray-absorbing (UVA) films was investigated for the establishment of parthenocarpic eggplant cultivars which can be cultivated under UVA films. The difference in skin coloration of deep-colored fruits under the calyx of double haploids was significantly smaller than in light-colored ones. F1 plants from crosses between lines that were deep-colored under the calyx of double haploids showed smaller differences in fruit skin coloration under different films than F1 plants from crosses between lines that were light-colored under the calyx of double haploids. These results indicate that fruit skin coloration under the calyx is hereditarily related to fruit skin coloration under UVA films. Additionally, fruit skin coloration under the calyx is useful as an index of the breeding of parthenocarpic eggplant varieties with deep-colored fruit skin in a greenhouse covered with UVA film.
