Variability, interrelationship and path coefficient studies in watermelon

Genetic variability, heritability, genetic advance, correlation and path coefficient of yield and attributing traits were studied in twenty watermelon genotypes. The variance analysis for fourteen quantitative characters showed that genotypes differ significantly among them for all characters under study indicating great variability among the genotypes selected. High heritability and high genetic gain were observed for weight of 100 seeds, seeds fruit−1, yield plant−1 and fruit weight. Studies on correlation and path analysis indicated that genotypic correlations were higher than phenotypic level in general. The yield plant−1 had positive and significant correlation with fruit polar diameter, fruit weight, number of fruits plant−1 and seeds fruit−1 at both phenotypic and genotypic levels. The path coefficient analysis revealed that number of fruits plant−1 and fruit weight had positive direct effect on yield plant−1. Hence, selection based on these characters will be effective for improvement of high yielding genotypes in watermelon.