Correlation and factor analysis of quantitative traits of wild pomegranate in Himachal Pradesh

Abstract

The aim of this research was to carry out correlation and factor analysis of quantitative traits of four wild pomegranate provenances viz., Narag, Waknaghat, Jonaji and Nauni, each comprised of three genotypes. Sixteen quantitative traits of leaves, flowers and fruits of wild pomegranate were used for statistical analysis. Results demonstrated significant variations among different provenances for all quantitative traits except leaf length, leaf breadth and leaf petiole length. Narag provenance revealed highest value for most of the traits viz., leaf area (5.46 cm2), flower petal length (20.16 mm), fruit length (5.61 cm), fruit breadth (5.48 cm), fruit rind thickness (3.32 mm), fruit fresh weight (78.61 gm), fruit rind weight (35.45 gm), fruit aril weight (43.16 gm) and no. of arils per fruit (294.82 gm). It was found that leaf length was in positive correlation with several fruit characteristics viz., fruit length (r = +0.826), Fruit breadth (r = +0.745), fruit fresh weight (r = +0.735), fruit rind weight (r = +0.650), fruit aril weight (r = +0.725) and no. of arils per fruit (r = +0.623). The characteristics of the leaves and fruits provided the main factor, confirming 42.57% of the total variance, which must be taken into consideration when distinguishing between wild pomegranate genotypes.