A new papaya genotype with a higher resistance to high temperatures and diseases, and with a higher yield per hectare will replace the Maradol variety.
Felipe Mirafuentes Hernandez, a researcher at the National Institute for Forestry, Agriculture and Livestock (Inifap), reported that the new hybrid is already being tested in Yucatan, Campeche, Tabasco and Michoacán.
To create a new genotype, according to Mirafuentes, up to seven self-fertilizations of the parent plants are required to achieve homogenization that can then be crossed, and the results can be evaluated.
Mirafuentes said that the new variety still doesn't have a name and is known as MS by Jota. Its parents are Maradol, Tabasco selection, and Jota, a variety that was collected in Nacajuca.
The new hybrid inherited the latter variety's resistance and the Maradol's long life.
"That's why retailers and consumers accept it. That's why it needs a long life, so it can be transported and marketed in the country," he said.
Source: NOTIMEX