Diversity analysis of long- and round-fruited brinjal genotypes using multivariate analysis

Abstract

For sustainable production and climate change adaptation, farmers need better brinjal varieties. This study aimed to identify suitable long and round brinjal genotypes for utilization in future breeding programmes. About 69 brinjal genotypes, including long- and round-fruited types collected from different sources, were evaluated following a randomized complete block design. Characters such as plant height, plant spread (N-S), petiole length, leaf blade length and width, days to 50% flowering, fruit weight, length, number of fruits/plant, and marketable fruit yield/plant emerged as the most reliable characters irrespective of fruit shape in brinjal for selection. Fruit weight and number of fruits/plants, irrespective of fruit shape, emerged as the most important selection indices. Six clusters formed in this study do not correspond to geographic locations, suggesting that genotypes inside a cluster were genetically distinct from genotypes collected in the same location. Multivariate analysis and average values of economic characters suggest that 8 genotypes’ Bidhan Supreme, 2020/BRL VAR-10, 2021/BRL VAR-5, 2022/BRL VAR-12, 2022/BRL VAR-13, 2022/BRL VAR-8, 2022/BRL VAR-6 and 2022/BRL VAR-1’ in long-fruited brinjal, and 4 genotypes, 2021/BRR VAR-2, 2021/BRR VAR-8, 2021/BRR VAR-12 and 2021/BRR VAR-11 in round-fruited brinjal could be potential donors for future brinjal breeding. Breeders might be able to introduce potential alleles into commercial genotypes to obtain prospective recombinants that possess desired economic characteristics.