Genetic divergence in mango varieties and possible use in breeding

Abstract

Indian subcontinent is well known for rich genetic diversity in mango. Forty two important cultivars with potential use in breeding programme were studied for heritability and divergence in fruit characters. Data on 14 quantitative fruit traits were subjected to analysis of genotypic and phenotypic coefficient of variation, heritability, genetic advance and clustering using D2 with group constellation following Tocher’s method. Weight of pulp, fruit, stone and peel, pulp: stone ratio, length of fruit and stone had high genotypic coefficient of variation and heritability accompanied with greater genetic advance as percent of mean indicating important role of these traits for selecting parents in hybridization programme. Using group constellation, cultivars were grouped into three distinct clusters. Cultivar with higher mean for weight of fruit and peel, fruit length, width and thickness of fruit and stone, fruit length and width ratio (FLWR) and pulp: stone ratio were grouped in cluster III and high pulp weight and percent, TSS, weight, length and width of stone were grouped in cluster II. Highest intra-cluster distance was observed in cluster I, while highest inter-cluster distance was between cluster I and II. Pulp weight contributed maximum towards the genetic divergence (34.03%) followed by peel weight (22.65%), TSS (10.22%) stone weight (7.90%) and width (5.46%). These fruit traits may be considered for selecting promising parents.