Morphological Studies of Bell Pepper Germplasm

Morphological characterization of bell pepper (Capsicum annuum L. var. grosssum Sendt.) germplasm is a prerequisite in a crop improvement program. The study was conducted during 2007 and 2008 at the vegetable experimental farm of the CSK Himachal Pradesh Agricultural University, Palampur, Himachal Pradesh, India, to study morphological traits of bell pepper genotypes which include the parents ‘Kandaghat Selection’, ‘EC-464115’, ‘EC-464107’, ‘HC-201’, ‘AC-48’, ‘SKAU-SP-613-1’, ‘PBC-631’, ‘SKAU-SP-633-1’, ‘California Wonder’, ‘Yolo Wonder’, and ‘Solan Bharpoor’ and 24 F1 hybrids from previous Line × Tester mating with comparison to the standard check ‘Bharat’. Characterization of genotypes was done for the plant descriptors fruit shape, fruit shape at pedicel attachment, blossom end fruit shape, fruit position, plant height, and fruit color. Blocky fruit shape, lobate pedicel attachment, sunken blossom end fruit shape, pendent fruit position, and dark green fruit color at the time of horticultural maturity could be desirable horticultural attributes. Bell pepper germplasm contain sufficient genetic variability and can be used for crop improvement. Characterization of bell pepper germplasm will provide valuable information for strengthening breeding programs because it helps in selection of parents on the basis of morphological characters. The character expression of F1s surpassing parents either positively or negatively was comparable to a transgression effect. Resemblance to either parent and intermediate character expression was attributed to dominant and additive gene action, respectively.