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GENETIC VARIABILITY AND CHARACTER CORRELATION IN PURE LINES, F₁ AND F₂ PROGENIES OF CHICKPEA (CICER ARIETINUM L.)

A. BAKHSH*, T. GULL, AFSARI SHARIF, M. ARSHAD* AND B.A. MALIK*

Abstract: An investigation was carried out to estimate genetic variability and level of association of grain yield with its various components, separately in 18 parental lines, 28 F₁ and 19 F₂ generations. Highly significant genotypic differences were noted in these populations for characters like plant height, number of primary and secondary branches, pods per plant, 100-seed weight, biological yield, harvest index and grain yield. A comparison between F₁, F₂ and parental lines revealed that the range of inter-genotypic variation for the above mentioned characters in F₁ and F₂ was wider than that of parental lines. Generally the genetic correlation coefficients were greater than those of phenotypic correlations in all the populations. Positive and highly significant genetic correlation of yield with plant height, number of primary and secondary branches, number of pods per plant, 100 seed weight and biological yield was observed in parental lines. In F₁ positive and highly significant correlation of grain yield was observed with number of secondary branches, pods/plant and biological yield, whereas in F₂ number of secondary branches, pods per plant, biological yield and harvest index showed positive and highly significant correlation with grain yield. The pattern and level of association of grain yield with its components and inter-relation of these components differed in some cases between F₁, F₂ and parental genotypes. The correlation of seed yield with pods/plant, biological yield and fruit bearing branches was positive and highly significant in all the three sets of genotypes characterized in this study. On the basis of these results and the results reported in the literature it can be suggested that a chickpea plant with enhanced yield potential can be synthesized through hybridization by combining high number of pods/plant and fruit bearing branches and high biological yield into a single genotype.

Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan.

Pulse Programme, National Agricultural Research Centre, Islamabad, Pakistan.