Agronomic evaluation and clonal selection of ginger genotypes (Zingiber officinale Roseoe) in Brazil

Abstract

The analysis of the genetic diversity of ginger based on agronomic traits is essential to know its performance and to design breeding programs. In this study, we analyzed the phenotypic variability of 61 accessions of the ginger germplasm collection of the "Luiz de Queiroz" College of Agriculture at the University of Sao Paulo (ESALQ/USP) in a complete randomized block design with four replications. An analysis of variance test was performed and genetic parameters such as heritability, genetic variance, environmental variance, genetic-environmental variation ratio (CVg/CVe) and genetic correlations were estimated. There were highly significant differences (P≤0.01) among the accessions for all the agronomic traits analyzed. The CVg/CVe ratio (>1), along with the high heritability (>80%), showed a significant contribution of genetic factors on the phenotypic expression of plant height, rhizome thickness and yield traits, favoring the clonal selection of genotypes. Accessions Gen-29, Gen-29, Gen-32, Gen-36, Gen-37, Gen-40, Gen-41, Gen-42, Gen-50 were selected due to the best agronomic performance when compared to the rest of the germplasm. The results obtained may be useful in future breeding programs in Brazil.