Genetic diversity of chilli (Capsicum annuum L.) genotypes of India based on morpho-chemical traits.

Abstract

Study on genetic diversity was conducted with 30 chilli (Capsicum annuum L.) genotypes of Indian origin at the research farm of Vegetable Science, College of Horticulture and Forestry, Central Agricultural University, Pasighat, Arunachal Pradesh, India during March-October 2011. Twelve quantitative characters viz. plant height (cm), number of primary branch per plant, days to first flowering, fruit length (cm), fruit diameter (cm), number of fruit per plant, average fruit weight (g), green fruit yield per plant (g), number of seed per fruit, ascorbic acid (mg/100g), capsaicin content (%) and chlorophyll content (mg/g) were taken into consideration. The analysis of variance revealed considerable variability among the genotypes for the character studied. Cluster analysis was used for grouping of 30 chilli genotypes under the study grouped into six clusters. Cluster III had maximum (14) and cluster IV and V had the minimum number (1) of genotypes. The highest (459.81) inter cluster distance was observed between cluster II and IV and the lowest (36.04) between cluster I and IV. Cluster III (D2= 67.66) have exhibited highest intra cluster distance and the lowest was observed in cluster II (D2=11.19). The characters capsaicin content and ascorbic acid contributed maximum towards divergence. Considering diversity pattern and other horticultural performance the genotypes CHFC-7 from cluster VI, genotype CHFC-27 from cluster II and CHFC-15 from cluster III may be taken into consideration as better parents for an efficient hybridization programme of chilli.