DefinePK

Abstract

Cicer arietinum L., commonly known as chickpea, is the 2nd essential legume throughout the globe and is vital for global food security and sustainable practices due to its high nutritional value, adaptability to various climates, and nitrogen fixation. A pot experiment was conducted at the Experimental area of University of the Punjab Lahore to assess the genetic-variability and association of various morphological traits in different chickpea genotypes at the seedling stage during October 2023. A Completely Randomized Block design (RCBD) was applied along with three replications. Following traits were evaluated; shoot-length(SL), root-length(RL), seedling-biomass(SB), R-S ratio, leaf-length(LL), leaf-width(LW), and leaf-area(LA). Standard statistical analysis calculates genetic variability, heritability(Hbs2 ), and genetic advance(GA). Out of the seven characters studied, leaf area, seedling biomass, and root length exhibited a high value of genotypic-coefficients of variation(GCV), heritability, and high genetic-advance, indicating that these parameters depicted potential traits for effective selection to developing desirable chickpea varieties or genotypes. The path analysis revealed that leaf length, root-to-shoot ratio, and seedling biomass had the greatest positive direct effect on seedling length and thus may be considered useful traits for improvement against drought stress tolerance in chickpea.