• Submitted by: admin
• Science and Technology
• 11 / 21 / 2006

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By Raisa Pagés

New varieties of tomatoes and sweet peppers developed at the Liliana Dimitrova Horticulture Research Institute are showing excellent initial results.

Hortensia Cardozo, director of the center, told Granma that besides being disease resistant, the VYTA tomato variety can be planted as late as March, extending the months when tomatoes are harvested.

VYTA tomatoes tolerate the hot, humid climate of Cuba and require fewer applications of imported agrochemical products. Its initial use on 9,505 hectares in different regions of the country resulted in a savings of $600,000 USD.

Meanwhile, the planting of a large and square shaped sweet pepper variety, known as LICAL, has also rapidly extended due to its adaptability to the Cuban climate.

Cardozo noted that a high-yield golden colored sweet pepper variety has also been developed. The Horticulture Research Institute, located in the rural Havana municipality of Quivican, are currently distributing seeds of this variety.

Another hybrid tomato, the LTM-2, resistant to virus and nematodes, has substituted costly seed imports in 12 covered field projects in the provinces of Villa Clara, Holguin and Camaguey.

Cardozo further noted that the first Cuban hybrid sweet pepper, the LPD-5, is also competitive on the international market.