Ripening Behavior of Wild Tomato Species

Nine wild tomato species were surveyed for variability in ripening characteristics. External signs of ripening, age of fruit at ripening, and ethylene production patterns were compared. Ethylene production was monitored using an ethylene-free air stream system and gas chromatography. Based on these ripening characteristics, the fruits fell into three general categories: those that change color when they ripen, green-fruited species that abscise prior to ripening, and green-fruited species that ripen on the vine.The fruits that change color, Lycopersicon esculentum var. cerasiforme, Lycopersicon pimpinellifolium and Lycopersicon cheesmanii, exhibited a peak of ethylene production similar to the cultivated tomato; there were differences, however, in the timing and magnitude of the ethylene production. Peak levels of ethylene production are correlated with age at maturity. For the two species that abscise prior to ripening, Lycopersicon chilense and Lycopersicon peruvianum, ability to produce ethylene varied with stage of maturity. The two species differed from each other in time of endogenous ethylene production relative to abscission, suggesting differences in the control mechanisms regulating their ripening. For two of the green-fruited species that ripen on the vine, Lycopersicon chmielewskii and Lycopersicon parviflorum, ethylene production was correlated to fruit softening. For Lycopersicon hirsutum and Solanum pennellii, however, ethylene production was not correlated with external ripening changes, making questionable the role of ethylene as the ripening hormone in these fruits.