Genetic variability, correlation studies, path coefficient analysis and genetic divergence in horsegram (Macrotyloma uniflorum (Lam.) Verdc.)

A field experiment was undertaken to evaluate the variability and performance of thirty horsegram genotypes collected from various regions of Kerala and outside for yield and yield attributing characters. Analysis of variance was carried out based on the recorded observations, and it showed significant differences among the 30 genotypes for all the fifteen characters studied. Most of the traits exhibited narrow differences between PCV and GCV except for seeds per pod, the number of primary branches per plant and yield per plant. Yield per plant was found to be significant and positively correlated to primary and the number of secondary branches per plant, nodes per plant, pod number per plant, seeds per pod and 100 seed weight both at phenotypic and genotypic levels. Path analysis revealed that pod number per plant, seeds per pod, nodes per plant, 100 seed weight and days to maturity were the major yield contributing characters owing to their favorable direct effect on yield per plant. Genetic diversity studies using Mahalanobis’ D² statistics assembled the 30 genotypes into eight clusters.