Factors Imparting Resistance to Fruit Damage by Heliothis armigera (Hubner) in Some Tomato Phenotypes

In tomato, infestation by the natural population of the fruit borer, Heliothis armigera (Hubner), on number basis was positively correlated with infestation on weight basis. Infestation was negatively correlated with the number of flowers per inflorescence. Surface texture of calyx also affected the susceptibility of the genotype. Reducing sugars in fruits were positively correlated, while zinc and iron content in foliage and ascorbic acid contents in fruits were negatively correlated with degree of infestation. Coefficient of determination revealed that 87% variability in borer infestation was due to zinc, iron, ascorbic acid and reducing sugar content.