U ovom se radu razmatraju morfološke značajke, vijabilnost polena i zametanje ploda u pet kultivara rajčice (Roma, Tropimech, Tima, Tedino i UC-82-B) uzgajane u Nigeriji. Sjeme je uzgojeno u Botaničkom vrtu Sveučilišta Ilorin u Nigeriji. Sakupljeni su i analizirani podaci o morfologiji rasta i stvaranju ploda te utvrđena vijabilnost polena u odnosu na zametanje ploda.Rezultati pokazuju značajne varijacije i korelacije između visine biljke i karakterikstike listova. Međutim,vegetativni rast nije bio u izravnoj vezi s postotkom stvaranja cvjetova i zametanja plodova, ali vijabilnost polena bila je izravno proporcionalna sa zametanjem plodova kod istraživanih kultivara rajčice.Smanjenje vijabilnosti polena pratio je manji broj zametenih plodova.Na broj plodova i veličinu mogu djelovati biotički i abiotički čimbenici, iako se otkrilo da je postotak vijabilnog polena u majčinskoj stanici polena djelovao na zametanje ploda. Dok zrna polena na terenu mogu podlijegati mnogobrojnom stresu, vijabilnost polena u kontroliranom okruženju može se razlikovati od vijabilnosti polena na otvorenom. Međutim,vijabilnost polena u izravnoj je vezi sa zametanjem ploda u rajčice i može se promatrati kao vitalna značajka za poboljšanje rajčice u uzgojnom programu.The present study considered morphological traits, pollens viability and fruit set among five tomatovarieties(Roma, Tropimech, Tima, Tedino and UC-82-B) grown in Nigeria. The seeds were grown in the screen house facility at the Botanical garden, University of IlorinNigeria. Growth and fruiting morphological data were collected and analyzed while pollen viability in relation to fruit set was determined. The results showed significant vegetative growth variations and correlations between plant height and leaf characters. However, vegetative growth was notdirectly related to percentage offlower formation and fruit set, but pollen viability was directly proportional to fruit set in the tomato varieties studied. Reduction in pollen viability was accompanied by lower number of fruit set. Fruit number and size may be affected by biotic or abiotic factors, nonetheless, the percentage of viable pollens in Pollen Mother Cell was found to affect fruit set. Although pollen grains in the field may be subjected to multiple stresses simultaneously;viability of pollens in a controlled setup may differ to the pollen viability in the open field environment. However, pollen viability is directly associated with fruit set in tomato and could be screened as a vital trait for improved tomato in breeding programme
