Morphological and physico-chemical characterization of ber (Ziziphus mauritiana Lamk.) genotypes in semi-arid zone of Punjab

Abstract

Indian jujube (Zizyphus mauritiana Lamk.) commonly known as ber is an important fruit crop of arid and semi-arid regions of tropical and subtropical areas. The morphological and physico-chemical characterization of twelve genotypes of jujube were studied at Punjab Agricultural University, Regional Station Bathinda. Ber genotypes characterized on the basis of tree, leaf and fruit characteristics exhibited significant variability. Leaf length ranged from 7.42 to 13.00 cm, leaf breadth from 5.60 to 8.77 cm and petiole size from 1.47 to 3.17 cm. Fruit yield (62.35 kg/tree), fruit weight (27.31 g) and pulp to stone ratio (23.60) was observed significantly higher in Umran. All the genotypes under study showed distinct variations and the genotypes with superior traits can be further used for improvement in ber crop through selection and hybridization to get desired traits.