Heritability, Correlation and Genetic Divergence Analysis in Linseed (Linum Usitatissimum L.)

Abstract

The present investigation was carried out at Crop Research Center (Chirori), Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel University of Agriculture & Technology, Meerut, during rabi season 2016-17. The experimental material consisted of forty diverse genotypes/ lines of linseed. The experiment was conducted in Randomized Complete Block Design in three replications, to assess genetic variability, heritability, genetic advance, correlation coefficient, path coefficient analysis and genetic divergence for eleven quantitative characters. Observations were recorded for days to 50 per cent flowering, days to maturity, plant height (cm), number of primary branches per plant, number of secondary branches per plant, number of capsules per plant, number of seeds per capsule, biological yield per plant (g), seed yield per plant (g), harvest index (%) and 1000 seed weight. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) exhibited that the linseed genotypes in the present investigation were having high range of genetic variability which may be used in further breeding programme for getting superior and desired recombinants for particular traits. High heritability coupled with high genetic advance as percent of mean may be used as a tool for desired traits in relation to direct selection of superior genotypes from genetically diverse population. Significant positive association and positive direct and indirect effect of independent variables on dependent variable mostly used as indirect selection for shorting the desired genotypes. Both the direct and indirect selection parameters were found to have potential for improving the traits of interest through selection breeding programme. Based on D2 value the breeding programme could be taken between the genotypes of cluster V (HIMANI, KL 284) and cluster VII (LCK 88132) with high D2 value then between cluster III (SHARDA, SUYOG, NL 315, LCK 1101, LCK 88062, R-7, LCK 1627, LCK 153, LCK 87311, LCK 3532, LCK 253, LCK 87042, SELECTION 1405, LCK 152) and Cluster IV (OL 98-15-2, LCK 206, LMS 2015-122, LCK 863, LCK 148, LCK 87312, LCK 254, LCK 241, LCK 1625, LCK 8528) with low D2 value for obtaining superior desirable recombinants for the various traits of present investigation that were most important for the improvement of seed yield in linseed crop. Thus, crosses between the genotypes of above mentioned clusters would produce the better recombinants or segregants with desirable traits for improvement of seed yield in linseed.