Comparative testing of lines of oriental tobacco from the Dupnitsa ecotype

Abstract

During the period 2022-2024 at the Experimental Field in Rila, within the Tobacco and Tobacco Products Institute in Markovo, two new lines of Oriental tobacco from the Dupnitsa ecotype – Line 503 and Line 504, as well as four control varieties: Rila 544 (standard for the Dupnitsa ecotype) and three high-quality varieties – Dupnitsa 160, Dupnitsa 733 and the variety Katerini (from Greece) were tested in a variety trial. Data were collected on morphological parameters – height, number of leaves, length, and width of leaves from the medium harvesting belt. The amount of yield (kg/da) and percentage of classes was evaluated. The higher number of leaves, the smaller leaf sizes from the middle harvesting zone, the higher yield and quality, as well as their low variation across years, and the higher percentage of the fourth and fifth harvesting groups compared to the control varieties provide grounds to determine that lines 503 and line 504 meet the new requirements for quality, yield, and high adaptive capacity to a greater extent.