ASSESSMENT OF GENETIC VARIATION IN ETHIOPIAN MUSTARD (BRASSICA CARINATA A. BRAUN) GERMPLASM USING MULTIVARIATE TECHNIQUES

The study aims to determine the extent of genetic variability and relationships among the Brassica carinata germplasm using agro-morphological characters. The germplasm assayed comprised 134 accessions acquired from abroad and collected locally from diverse ecologies of Pakistan. All the genotypes were characterized for 33 agro-morphological characters ranging from seedling emergence to crop maturity. The data were analyzed by numerical taxonomic techniques using 2 complementary procedures: cluster and principal component analyses. A considerable level of variability was noticed for a number of agro-morphological traits. The largest variation was observed in seed yield (kg/ha) whereas a moderate variability was observed in plant height, main raceme length, silique/main raceme, glucosinolate contents and erucic acid. Hierarchical cluster analysis categorized the 134 accessions into seven main clusters. First three principal components (PCs) accounted for a total of 39.03% of variability among the accessions using agro-morphological traits. PC1 had 17.79% of total variation in agro-morphological traits; PC2 depicted 11.45% of total morphological variability, while PC3 accounted for 9.80% of the total variation. On the basis of greater yield potential, seed yield per plant, 1000-seed weight, oil contents, protein contents and oleic acid four promising genotypes (25939, 25942, 25994 and 26190) have been identified for future breeding and variety development programs.