Genetic divergence study for growth characters among clones of Eucalyptus

Abstract

In the study, the genetic divergence in Eucalyptus was estimated based on the growth traits of 20 clones grown in the South Gujarat, India. Accordingly, a field experiment was performed using a randomized block design and three replications to compare divergences in diameter at breast height (DBH), mid-diameter, height, form quotient and volume at 6 years of age. Tocher's clustering method was performed using the Mahalanobis distance. The twenty clones were grouped into 6 clusters on the basis of growth attributes. Cluster I was formed with 15 clones and remaining five clones were grouped into 5 separate clusters indicating these five clones are genetically distant from each other. The divergence analysis indicated that promising crosses could be made between cluster IV and VI containing clone C20 and C4 respectively as recorded the largest statistical distance signifying maximum divergence. This may result in substantial segregation for quantitative traits studies and help in further selection for overall improvement of Eucalyptus species in South Gujarat condition.