SUMMARYBlanched leaf tips of ten sweet potato cultivars were evaluated for eating qualities such as tenderness, flavour, stem and leaf colour, and hairiness to determine selection criteria. Some cultivars compared favourably with the control in most quality attributes, with a general agreement on the acceptability ranking of three cultivars. Stepwise multiple regression analysis suggested that all the quality attributes studied are important in predicting general acceptability of blanched tips, but the use of stem colour and hairiness for initial selection should be sufficient to reduce the number of lines prior to further evaluation.

Less than 1% (38 of 4050 accessions) of the world collection of the garden tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) and related Lycopersicon species displayed a high level of heat tolerance based on fruit setting ability at high temperature. Thirty of these heat-tolerant accessions belong to L. esculentum, 7 to L. pimpinellifolium and 1 is a cross between L. esculentum and L. pimpinellifolium.

There is wide variation in the morphological characteristics of sweet potato leaf tips which are acceptable as a vegetable for human consumption. Thus many cultivars are available from which further selections can be made for yield, palatability, tenderness, flavour, and nutritional quality. A list is given of some cultivars which combine a number of desirable traits.

Steamed roots of promising breeding lines of sweet potato (Ipomoea batastas (L.) Lam) and cultivars were evaluated for flavor, dryness, stickiness, color, and general acceptability to determine selection criteria that influence general acceptability. The acceptability ranking of roots varied according to the nationality of the panel member. Based on the results of stepwise multiple regression analysis, it appeared that flavor and color would be good eating quality characteristics for predicting general acceptability of steamed sweet potato roots. Alcohol insoluble solids and total soluble solids after steaming contributed 85% to the variation of dryness in sweet potato roots.

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