Divergence studies in sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L)

Sixteen genotypes of sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L) from diverse geographical regions were evaluated to understand the extent of genetic diversity through 16 characters. Mahalanobis’s D² analysis established the presence of wide genetic diversity among these genotypes by formation of 5 clusters. Clusters I and III comprised maximum number of genotypes followed by cluster II whereas cluster V was monogenotypic. The maximum intracluster distance was found in cluster III (D²= 4,828.64) followed by cluster I (D²= 2,597.26). However the maximum inter-cluster distance was observed between clusters IV cluster V (D²= 34,082.51). The genotypes Kamala Sundari, SV-98, Ozarde Local and S-56-2 recorded maximum tuber yield than rest of the genotypes. Hence it is essential to evaluate these high yielding genotypes over the location to understand stable performance for their commercial utilization. Selection of genotypes is recommended from the clusters showing higher inter-cluster distance ie clusters IV and V as parents in recombination breeding programmes for obtaining desirable segregants.