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BREEDING  HIGH  YIELDING  DESI  CHICKPEA (CICER ARIETINUM L.) GENOTYPES FOR THE AGRO-CLIMATIC CONDITIONS OF NWFP

G.S.S. KHATTAK, I. SAEED AND R. ZAMIR

Abstract: Seeds of the 2 local desi chickpea varieties viz., Pb-91and C-44 were irradiated through gamma rays at 200 and 300 Gy doses during the year 2000. The M₁ to M₄ generations were raised from 2000-2001 to 2003-2004 at NIFA experimental field, Peshawar. The selected high yielding mutants were evaluated in replicated yield trials during 2004-2005 for yield and some important agronomic traits. The mutants derived from Pb-91 ranged for days to 50% flowering, 90% pods maturity and plant height from 149 to 156 days, 192 to 201 days and 62 to 80 cm, respectively. 100 seed weight ranged from 19 to 23.1 g 100^-1 seed weight. The mutants CMN-35-23 and CMN-20-7 exhibited the larger seed size. The mutants produced 760 to 1620 kg ha^-1 seed yield and the mutant CMN-15-4 produced the maximum seed yield. The mutants derived from C-44 had 50% days to flowering, 90% days to maturity and plant height from 130 to 153 days, 176 to 197 days and 55 to 69 cm, respectively. The 100 seed weight of all the mutants of C-44 ranged from 19.8 to 23.9 g 100^-1 seed weight. The seed yield ranged from 885 kg ha^-1 to 1552 kg ha^-1. The mutant CMN-4-25-13 produced the highest seed yield of 1552 kg ha^-1among the mutants derived from the parent C-44. These mutants will be further evaluated in yield trials at the major chickpea growing areas in different locations for seed yield and stability test. The best performing mutant will be released as commercial variety for the agro-climatic conditions of NWFP and the rest will be utilized as germplasm in the chickpea breeding programmes in the country.

Nuclear Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA), Tarnab, Peshawar, Pakistan.