Twenty six diverse genotypes of ashwagandha [Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal]were evaluated for fourteen quantitative traits under rainfed conditions. Both phenotypicand genotypic coefficients of variation were higher for important traits like number ofberries/plant, fresh weight of berries/plant, biomass yield at maturity and ratio of freshabove ground biomass: fresh root biomass. High heritability in conjunction with highgenetic advance were observed for number of berries/plant, fresh weight of berries/plant,seed yield/plant, fresh root yield/plant, biomass yield at maturity and ratio of fresh aboveground biomass : fresh root biomass which indicated predominant role of additive geneaction for the expression of these characters. Fresh root yield/ plant was found to bepositively and significantly correlated with number of berries/plant, fresh weight ofberries/plant, seed yield/plant and root diameter. Path analysis revealed that totalalkaloid content showed the highest positive direct effect on fresh root yield/plantfollowed by biomass yield at maturity, seed yield/plant, root diameter and number ofberries/plant which suggested that selection for these traits would be quite effective toimprove fresh root yield in ashwagandha.

Genetic variability, character association and path analysis in ashwagandha [Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal] under rainfed conditions

Ashwagandha (Withania sominifera Dunal) is an imperative medicinal crop in herbal industry since time immemorial which roots are in commercial importance. This herb known for its ability to enhance the resistance to stresses, increases stamina and promotes general wellbeing. The changes in the plant growth and quality of the roots mainly depend on different agronomic practices coupled with stage of harvesting. Plants grown under organic and inorganic sources of nutrients were used up to twelve months of sowing for yield analysis and tubers were analyzed for its alkaloid, total fiber and withaferine A contents upto ten months. Highest values for all above phyto constituents were recorded in tubers of organically grown compared to inorganically fertilized plants except crude fiber content and at six months after sowing is the best stage for harvesting to obtain high quality tubers. This is an important study for biochemical standardization of Ashwagandha tubers in commercial processing.

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Yield and Phytochemical Attributes of Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera Dunal) Tubers as Affected by Source of Nutrients

Comparative investigation of the genetic components of Withania somnifera L. yield and quality traits using multivariate and associations analysis in the Deccan plateau region

Genotypic association and path coefficient analysis in ashwagandha (Withania somnifera).

Thirty six genotypes of hip rose (Rosa sp.) collected from different areas of Kashmir valley and studied for nine polygenic characters. These revealed higher PCV than corresponding genotypic coefficient of variation (GCV) for plant height, fruit yield, fruit weight, fruit diameter, fruit length, pulp content, pulp to seed ratio, TSS and number of seeds. High heritability accompanied by moderate to high genetic gain and GCV were observed for plant height and yield which could be improved by selection in early generations. Fruit diameter (74.2%), fruit length (80.4%), fruit weight (79.9%) exhibited high heritability coupled with moderate GCV and low genetic gain which needs selection over several successive generations following hybridization for their edification. Genotypic correlations were of higher magnitude to the corresponding phenotypic ones, thereby establishing strong inherent relationship among the characters studied. The phenotypic and genotypic associations of fruit diameter was significantly positive with fruit weight (r = 0.337, 0.418), fruit pulp weight (r = 0.429, 0.507), number of seeds per fruit (r = 0.259, 0.0.406) and plant height (r = 384, 0.417). However, fruit length were significantly linked with fruit weight, pulp weight and fruit flesh ratio. Overall path analysis indicated that highest positive direct effect was showed by average fruit weight (6.694) followed by fruit flesh ratio (3.103), number of seeds per fruit (1.201), plant height (0.993), and fruit length (0.426); however, fruit diameter (-0.327), pulp weight (-8.319) and TSS (-0.529) showed negative direct effects on total hips yield which should be considered simultaneously for amenability in rose hips yield in Rosa species.

	 

	Key words: Character association, Rosa sp., path analysis, North Western Himalayan, Kashmir.

https://africaneditors.org/journal/AJAR/full-text-pdf/58837-112896

Character association and path analysis in hip rose (Rosa sp.) genotypes collected from North Western Himalayan region of Kashmir

Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) is a dryland medicinal crop and roots are
 used as valuable drug in traditional systems of medicine. Morphological
 variants (morphotypes) and the parental populations were evaluated for root -
 morphometric, quality and yield traits to study genetic association among
 them. Root morphometric traits (root length, root diameter, number of
 secondary roots/ plant) and crude fiber content exhibited strong association
 among them and showed significant positive genotypic correlation with yield.
 Starch-fiber ratio (SFR), determinant of brittle root texture showed strong
 negative association with root yield. The total alkaloid content had positive
 genotypic correlation with root yield. So genetic upgradation should aim at
 optimum balance between two divergent groups of traits i.e. root yield traits
 (root morphometric traits and crude fiber content) and root textural quality
 traits (starch content and SFR) to develop superior genotypes with better
 yield and quality.

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A Kumar Niranjana

Papers

Genetic association among root morphology, root quality and root yield in ashwagandha (Withania somnifera)