Abstract

                                A study was carried out to assess the drought tolerance ability of 32 tomato genotypes using PEG - 6000 induced moisture stress, on the basis of seedling parameters such as germination percentage, root length, shoot length, seedling dry weight and vigour index. In vitro screening revealed that seedling characters were reduced significantly at -0.2 MPa compared to control. Among the genotypes LE 18, LE 57, LE 27, LE 13 and LE 118 performed better under stress in terms of germination percentage, root length, shoot length, seedling dry weight and vigour index. Many of the genotypes did not germinate at -0.35 MPa. Varieties like CO 3, PKM 1, TNAU TH CO 3 and COTH 2 showed poor performance in terms of germination percentage, root and shoot length. This result can be used for pot and field level screening and manipulations in tomato cultivars for improvement of drought tolerance.

Key words : Drought tolerance, PEG – 6000, Tomato, Germination, Vigour index.