Table 1.
Plant and fruit descriptors used for the characterization of a collection of scarlet eggplant complex (S. aethiopicum and S. anguivi) and gboma eggplant complex (S. macrocarpon and S. dasyphyllum) accessions.
| Descriptors | Units/scale/description |
|---|---|
| PLANT DESCRIPTORS | |
| Plant Height | cm |
| Hypocotyl Anthocyanins Intensity | (S) 0 = Absent; 9 = Very strong |
| Shoot Tip Anthocyanins Intensity | (S) 0 = Absent; 9 = Very strong |
| Stem Diameter | cm |
| Angle Between Main Branches | (S) 1 ≤ 40°; 5 > 50° |
| Leaf Pedicel Length | cm |
| Leaf Blade Length | cm |
| Leaf Blade Breadth | cm |
| Leaf Blade Lobing | (S) 1 = Very weak; 9 = Very strong |
| Leaf Surface Shape | (S) 1 = Flat; 9 = Very convex or bullate |
| Leaf Prickles | (S) 0 = None; 9 = Very many (>20) |
| Length of Largest Leaf Prickle | cm |
| Number of Flowers per Inflorescence | (M)— |
| Corolla Color | (S)1 = Greenish white; 9 = Bluish violet |
| Number of Sepals | (M)— |
| Number of Petals | (M)— |
| Number of Stamens | (M)— |
| Corolla Diameter | mm |
| FRUIT DESCRIPTORS | |
| Weight | g |
| Length | cm |
| Breadth | cm |
| Perimeter | cm |
| Area | cm2 |
| Width Mid-height | The width measured at ½ of the fruit's height (cm) |
| Maximum Width | The maximum horizontal distance of the fruit (cm) |
| Height Mid-width | The height measured at ½ of the fruit's width (cm) |
| Maximum Height | The maximum vertical distance of the fruit (cm) |
| Fruit Shape Index External I | The ratio of the Maximum Height to Maximum Width |
| Fruit Shape Index External II | The ratio of the Height Mid-width to Width Mid-height |
| Proximal Fruit Blockiness | Ratio of the width at the upper blockiness position to Width_MH |
| Distal Fruit Blockiness | Ratio of the width at the lower blockiness position to Width_MH |
| Fruit Shape Triangle | Ratio of the width at the upper blockiness position to the lower blockiness position |
| Ellipsoid | The ratio of the error resulting from a best-fit ellipse to the area of the fruit; smaller values indicate that the fruit is more ellipsoid |
| Circular | The ratio of the error resulting from a best-fit circle to the area of the fruit; smaller values indicate that the fruit is more circular |
| Rectangular | The ratio of the rectangle bounding the fruit to the rectangle bounded by the fruit |
| Shoulder Height | The ratio of the average height of the shoulder points above the proximal end point to Maximum Height |
| Distal End Protrusion | Ratio of the area of the distal protrusion to the total area of the fruit, multiplied by 10 |
| Obovoid | Calculated according to the formula provided in the tomato Analyzer Manual (Rodríguez et al., 2010). The higher the value, the greater is the area of the fruit below mid height |
| Ovoid | Calculated according to the formula provided in the tomato Analyzer Manual (Rodríguez et al., 2010). The higher the value, the greater is the area of the fruit above mid height |
| Width Widest Pos | The ratio of the height at which the Max_Width occurs to the Max_Height |
| Eccentricity | The ratio of the height of the internal ellipse to the Maximum Height |
| Proximal Eccentricity | The ratio of the area of the height of the internal ellipse to the distance between the bottom of the ellipse and the top of the fruit |
| Distal Eccentricity | The ratio of the area of the height of the internal ellipse to the distance between the bottom of the ellipse and the bottom of the fruit |
| Fruit Shape Index Internal | The ratio of the internal ellipse's height to its width |
| Eccentricity Area Index | The ratio of the area of the fruit outside the ellipse to the total area of the fruit |
Full details of the descriptors can be consulted elsewhere (IBPGR, 1990; Prohens et al., 2005; Brewer et al., 2006, 2007; van der Weerden and Barendse, 2007; Darrigues et al., 2008; Gonzalo and van der Knaap, 2008; Rodríguez et al., 2010). Thirty-four descriptors are metric, four are meristic, and seven are measured in a quantitative scale. The two latter are indicated by an “M” and a “Q,” respectively in their description.