genetic variation of morphological and yield characters of celosia argentea l. germplasm

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ *Corresponding author: Email: [email protected];

Original Research Article

Journal of Basic and Applied Research International

13(3): 160-169, 2016 ISSN: 2395-3438 (P), ISSN: 2395-3446 (O)

International Knowledge Press www.ikpress.org

GENETIC VARIATION OF MORPHOLOGICAL AND YIELD CHARACTERS OF Celosia argentea L. GERMPLASM

O. J. OLAWUYI 1, B. J. BAMIGBEGBIN 1 AND O. B. BELLO2*

1Department of Botany, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. 2Department of Biological Sciences, Fountain University, Osogbo, Nigeria.

AUTHORS’ CONTRIBUTIONS

This work was carried out in collaboration among all authors. Author OJO designed the study, wrote the protocol and interpreted the data. Author BJB anchored the field study, gathered the initial data and performed

preliminary data analysis, while author OBB the corresponding author managed the literature searches and produced the initial draft. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Received: 22nd July 2015 Accepted: 20th August 2015 Published: 15th October 2015 __________________________________________________________________________________

ABSTRACT

Genetic characterization of morphological and yield traits in ten genotypes of Celosia argentea L. was evaluated at the Research Farm of the Department of Botany, University of Ibadan, Nigeria. The experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design with four replicates. The results of analysis of variance carried out on early morphological characters of C. argentea L. at 3, 4, and 5weeks after sowing showed significant (p<0.05/p<0.01) effects except for number of leaves per plant and leaf width at 3 and 5 weeks after sowing, respectively. The replicates in blocks produced varying observable effects on the genotypes while genotype x replicate showed significant variation on morpho-agronomic and yield traits except number of days to flowering at 50 days and fruit length at maturity. Also, from the result of the mean separation, it is shown that NG/MAY/09/015 performed the best for plant height at flowering, leaf length at flowering, leaf width at flowering, and root biomass. NG/SA/07/213 produced the highest mean values of number of flowers per plant, leaf biomass and pod weight at maturity. The highest values of number of primary branches and fruit length at maturity (FLM) were observed for NG/TO/MAY/09/015, while NG/AO/MAY/09/015 had the highest for pod weight at maturity. The result of principal component axis also showed that Prin 1 accounted for highest Eigen Vector of 38.62% from the total variation. NG/MAY/09/015 (R2) genotype produced the highest Eigen Vector of 6.705 from Prin 1. The correlation result showed that plant height had a significant positive association with seed weight at maturity, pod weight at maturity, number of primary branches and fruit length at maturity, while similar association existed between leaf biomass, number of primary branches and pod weight at maturity, as well as between plant height at flowering and pod weight at maturity. Again, the number of primary branches is also positive and significantly correlated with plant height, root biomass and leaf length. Furthermore, the results of dendrogram and minimum spanning tree revealed variations in genetic relatedness and distance, respectively, which exist among the population of the C. argentea L. Keywords: Celosia argentea; genetic variation; germplasm; spanning tree.

Olawuyi et al.; JOBARI, 13(3): 160-169, 2016

161

1. INTRODUCTION Celosia argentea L. also known as Lagos spinach is a tetraploid species (2n=36), though some varieties were found to be octaploid [1]. It is an annual edible broadleaf and well known ornamental crop in Amaranthaceae family. It has a number of varieties and related species which include; Digera alternifolia and D. asches, found in Ethiopia, C. insertii Townsend, common in Togo, Ghana, Nigeria but locally called Ajefowo by Yorubas, while C. trigyna L. and C. cristata L. (cocks comb) are from South Asia. The leaves, young stem and inflorescences of C. argentea L. are widely eaten in tropical Africa, Asia and some parts of Europe as pot herbs, and are one of the world’s prettiest under-utilized vegetable crops much cultivated and marketed [2].

Previous studies conducted have shown that an extract from C. argentea L. used as an alcohol solution is used to heal burns, and wounds faster [3]. It is used as a treatment for intestinal worms (particularly tapeworm), blood diseases, mouth sores, and eyes problems. The seeds treat chest complaints and Diabetes mellitus, while the flowers treat diarrhea. The leaves are used as dressings for boils and sores, and the boiled vegetables are said to be slightly diuretic. Celosia has also been used in some parts of Africa as a potential traditional food plant that improve nutrition, boost food security, and foster rural development. This crop has been used as companion plant to control the growth of parasitic Striga plant [4]. Knowledge about germplasm diversity and genetic relationships among breeding materials could be an invaluable aid in crop improvement strategies [5]. Despite reported global food insecurity and hunger, C. argentea L. are underutilized and neglected. These had led to erosion of genetic base among these vegetables. In the past, Nigeria germplasm can boast of well over thirty genotypes of this crop, but presently only ten are viable and accessible. Hence, this study is targeted at validating for germplasm conservation the potentialities of C. argentea L. through phenotypic characterization, with a view of identifying genotypes with desirable traits for improvement program. This study therefore aimed at evaluating variations in genetic relatedness and distance which exist among genotypes of C. argentea L. and sourcing for component based on high yield in this population.

2. MATERIALS AND METHODS

2.1 Sources of C. argentea L. Genotypes and Study Location

The Lagos spinach genotypes evaluated in this study were sourced from National Institute of Horticultural

Research (NIHORT) and National Centre for Genetic Resources and Biotechnology (NACGRAB) in Ibadan, Nigeria (Table 1). The experiment was conducted between 2013 and 2014 at the research farm of the Department of Botany, University of Ibadan, Ibadan with latitude 7.4417° N and longitude 3.9000° E located in the rainforest area of Southwestern Nigeria.

2.2 Experimental Design and Method of Planting

The genotypes were raised for 2 weeks in the nursery bags before transplanting to the field, which was flat and cleared manually and tilled before sowing. The crop was raised following good agronomic practices according to standard procedures of FAO. The seedlings raised in bags were transplanted directly onto flat ground, arranged in randomized complete block design (RCBD) with four replications. Four replications of each genotype were sown along the row, which formed the experimental plot of 1.0/m long. Spacing of 0.5/m among rows and 0.25/m within rows was also carried out.

2.3 Collection and Analysis of Data

Data collection on growth parameters of cultivars commenced at 2 week after sowing (WAS). This was done on weekly basis till 9 weeks after sowing. Data collected on growth and agronomic characters were: Plant height, length of leaves, width of leaves, number of days to flowering (at 50/days), number of primary branches, number of flowers per plant, colour of flower, plant height at flowering, length of leaves at flowering, and width of leaves at flowering. Harvesting was done at the twelfth weeks after planting on the field. Data on yield characters were; Leaf biomass (g), fruit length at maturity (cm), pod weight at harvest (g), seed weight at harvest (g) and root biomass (g). The quantitative data were generated using metre rule and weighting balance, while others were recorded using developed scale. Genstat Discovery Edition statistical software was used to analyze the resulting data. All data were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) and means were separated using Least Significant Differences (LSD) according to Duncan multiple range test (P<0.05). Dendogram was also constructed from cluster analysis. The data were subsequently subjected to principal component analysis (PCA), with principal components >1.0 Eigen-value selected. Also, the relationships among the quantitative and qualitative traits were established using Pearson correlation coefficient.


162

Table 1. Germplasm collection of Celosia argentea L. seeds

Source Number of genotypes Genotypes National Centre for Genetic Resource and Biotechnology

9 NHGB/01260, NG/MR/MAY/09/015, NG/TO/MAY/09/015, NG/SA/07/213, NG/MA/MAY/09/015, NHGB/09/160, NG/MAY/09/015, NG/SA/07/213, NG/AO/MAY/09/015.

National Institute of Horticultural Research 1 NIHORT/0001

3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION From the results of the morphological traits for ten genotypes of Celosia argentea L. with respect to the growth parameters; plant height, leaf length, and leaf width and number of leaf per plant at various weeks are shown in Table 2. Some plants started vegetative growth at 2 weeks after sowing and continue up to 5 weeks after sowing (WAS). The genotypes produced highly significant (P < 0.01) effect on the plant height and leaf length, but significant (P < 0.05) for leaf width at 3 and 4 weeks after sowing (WAS) and number of leaf per plant at 5WAS. While numbers of leaves per plant and leaf width were observed to be non- significant at 3 and 5 WAS, respectively.

3.1 Mean Square Variance of six Morpho-agronomic and five Yield-related Traits of C. argentea L

The result of the mean square variance of the morpho-agronomic traits in C. argentea L. from Table 3 shows that the genotype and genotype x replicate produced highly significant (P< 0.01) effect on plant height at flowering, leaf length at flowering, leaf width at flowering and number of primary branches, while number of days to flowering at 50 days and number of flower per plant were not significant. The general performance of these genotypes with respect to yield traits is shown in Table 4. Leaf biomass and seed weight per plant were highly significant (P < 0.01) for genotype and genotype x replicate effects, while, pod weight per plant and root biomass were significant (P < 0.05). Fruit length at maturity did not produce significant effect, similar to number of days to flowering and number of flowers per plant recorded in the growth parameter. This result implies that the genotype x replicates affected significantly the expression of the traits in the population. It further suggests variability both among and within the

genotypes studied which is a key factor for crop improvement. 3.2 Principal Components Analysis (PCA) of

Celosia argentea L. Genotypes and their Replicates

The result of yield components of C. argental is presented in Table 5 revealed that the genotypes were delineated into two principal component axes; Prin 1 and Prin 2. Prin 1 constituted the highest, and accounted for 38.62% from the total variation, while Prin 2 was the least with percentage variation of 15.28. NG/MAY/09/015 (R2) genotype from Prin 1 had the highest eigen vector of 6.705, while NG/MA/MAY/09/015 (R3) was the least (-2.997). Also, Prin 2 produced the highest Eigen Vector for NG/TO/MAY/09/015 (R2) at 3.519, while NHGB/09/160(R2) had the least (-3.122). The Eigen values showed the contribution of these genotypes to genetic variation.

3.3 Mean Performance for Morphological and Yield Traits of Celosia argental

The result of the mean performance for morphological and yield traits reveals significant (P < 0.05) effect on Celosia argentea L. genotypes as shown in Table 6. NG/MAY/09/015 was significantly higher for plant height at flowering, leaf length at flowering, leaf width at flowering, and root biomass compared to other genotypes. Also, the number of flowers per plant, leaf biomass and seed weight at harvest produced significant effect from NG/SA/07/213. The number of primary branches and fruit length at maturity were significantly higher for NG/TO/MAY/09/015 but different from other genotypes. NG/AO/MAY/09/015 is significantly higher for pod weight at maturity than other genotypes.


163

Table 2. Morphological traits of ten genotypes of Celosia argentea L. at various growth stages

Genotype 3WAS (cm) 4WAS (cm) 5WAS (cm) PH LL LW NLP PH LL LW NLP PH LL LW NLP

NHGB/01260 7.47 3.27 1.08 8.00 8.28 5.35 2.20 12.00 20.60 7.75 3.00 12.80 NG/MR/MAY/09/015 7.61 3.70 1.18 9.75 11.78 5.02 1.10 13.50 22.50 5.65 1.48 18.00 NG/TO/MAY/09/015 4.88 1.75 0.98 5.75 6.77 3.32 1.48 6.50 7.10 5.60 2.02 10.80 NG/SA/07/213 5.27 4.42 1.63 7.75 9.80 6.17 2.18 11.25 19.10 9.82 2.75 16.20 NG/MA/MAY/09/015 11.75 4.20 1.35 10.00 13.78 3.60 0.78 11.50 18.10 4.77 1.38 17.20 NHGB/09/160 6.70 4.07 1.78 8.50 9.93 7.90 2.88 12.00 31.60 10.70 3.17 28.80 NIHORT/0001 7.75 4.10 1.75 9.25 12.78 7.07 2.48 10.25 19.90 7.05 2.67 12.50 NG/MAY/09/015 8.10 5.75 1.88 10.75 11.72 9.45 3.78 13.50 34.30 10.67 3.58 21.50 NG/SA/07/213 8.78 3.57 1.31 7.25 13.82 6.12 1.80 11.50 22.40 7.65 2.48 25.20 NG/AO/MAY/09/015 10.57 3.90 1.00 8.75 17.32 5.25 1.35 16.50 23.80 6.87 2.88 20.00 Mean 3.87 7.89 1.39 8.57 11.60 5.93 18.3 2.00 21.9 7.65 2.54 18.3 SE 0.513 0.89 0.22 1.23 1.28 0.82 3.50 0.343 3.69 1.241 0.616 3.50 ANOVA 4.01** 17.99** 0.47* 8.61 ns 37.45** 14.01** 132.21** 3.23* 221.44** 18.05* 2.05 ns 132.21*

* = Significant at 5% level of probability ** = Significant at 1% level of probability SE = Standard error, ns = non significant, PH: plant height, LL: leaf length, LW: leaf width (cm), NLP: number of leaf per plant, WAS = weeks after sowing


164

Table 3. Mean variance of six morpho-agronomic traits of genotypes of C. argentea L.

Source of Variation

Df Plant height at flowering

length of leaf at flowering

width of leaf at flowering

Number of days to flowering (at 50 days)

Number of flowers per plant

Number of primary branches

Replicate 3 305.10ns 13.50ns 4.68ns 0.00ns 6.09ns 1.80ns Genotype 9 1522.50** 47.67** 11.22** 0.71ns 6.75ns 15.56** Genotype x replicate

27 208.70** 8.31** 1.31** 0.00ns 3.44ns 0.69**

CV (%) 35.0 31.20 31.70 0.0 107.6 33.2 * = Significant at 5%, ** = significant at 1% level of probability ns = non significant, df = degree of freedom

Table 4. Mean square variance of five yield related traits in ten genotypes of Celosia argentea L.

Source of variation Df Leaf biomass

Fruit length at maturity

Pod weight per plant

Seed weight per plant

Root biomass

Replicate 3 6905.10ns 28.80ns 8.90ns 0.20ns 2602.40ns Genotype 9 2569.90** 20.30ns 3.70* 36.90** 1952.70* Genotype x Replicate 27 435.70** 9.10ns 1.50* 0.70** 677.50* Total 39 CV (%) 59.10 33.10 51.20 21.00 102.40

* = Significant at 5%, ns = non significant** = significant at 1% level of probability; df = degree of freedom 3.4 Correlation Coefficient among Thirteen

Characters in Genotypes of Celosia argentea L

The associations of traits in C. argentea L. genotypes are shown in a correlation matrix (Table 7). The plant height had a strong significant positive correlation with seed weight at harvest (p < 0.05; r = 0.94), pod weight at maturity (r = 0.78), number of primary branches (r = 0.92), and fruit length at maturity (r = 0.91) as similarly observed by [6]. This suggests that selection process based on plant height could favour seed weight, pod weight at maturity, number of primary branches, and fruit length at maturity, which enhanced seed and flower production [7]. Meanwhile, a strong positive association exists between the root biomass and the number of primary branches (r = 0.92), but positively associated with seed weight at harvest (r = 0.63) and pod weight at harvest (r = 0.60). More so, root biomass, leaf length, and leaf width had strong positive relationship with number of primary branches at r = 0.92, r = 0.94, and r = 0.95 respectively [8]. Furthermore, positive association was recorded between number of leaf per plant and seed weight at harvest (r = 0.54), whereas positive and strong association was observed for number of leaf per plant with pod weight at harvest (r = 0.91) and fruit length at maturity (r = 0.96). Again, seed weight at harvest had a strong positive correlation with plant height at flowering (r = 0.85). These are in accordance with the findings of [9]. Strong positive correlation

also existed between plant height at flowering and pod weight at harvest (r = 0.82). Positive correlations were also observed between pod weight at harvest and leaf width at flowering (r = 0.52) and leaf biomass (r = 0.77). Also, number of primary branches revealed strong positive correlation for leaf width at flowering (r = 0.99), leaf length at flowering (r = 0.99), leaf biomass (r = 0.87). This implies that selection procedure based on seed weight will favour number of primary branches and plant height at flowering, which will increase yield of the edible portion of the vegetable in conformity with reports of [6,10]. Finally, strong positive correlation was recorded between leaf biomass and fruit length at maturity (r = 0.63). This further suggests that any selection based on the fruit length at maturity will favour the leaf biomass. 3.5 Minimum Spanning Tree Showing

Genetic Distances among Genotypes of Celosia argentea L

The genetic distance among the genotypes of C. argentea L. is presented in Fig. 1. The close and non-close relatives are revealed by the plots. NHGB/09/160 (22) and NG/MAY/09/015 (32) are genetically closer than NG/MAY/09/015 (30) and NG/SA/07/213 (35). Also, replicates NG/SA/07/213 (15) and NG/SA/07/213 (18) showed genetic proximity than was observed for replicate NHGB/01260 (3) and NG/SA/07/213 (34).


165

28

8

17

7

19

6

21

5

23

4

25

3

27

2

29

1

31

32

12 33

11

35

10

37

9

39

1815

20

13

22

36

24

34

38

14

26

16

30

40

-0.3

0.4

0.0

0.20.1

0.6

-0.2

-0.0-0.1-0.2

0.2

Fig. 1. Minimum spanning tree showing genetic distances among of genotypes of Celosia argentea L.

Generally, the replicates within a genotype such as; NHGB/01260 (1, 2, 3 and 4), NG/MR/MAY/09/015 (5, 6, 7 and 8), NG/TO/MAY/09/015 (9, 10, 11 and 12) NG/MA/MAY/09/015 (17, 18, 19 and 20), and NHGB/09/160 (21, 22, 23 and 24) showed close relationship compared to other genotypes. These are indications of genetic relatedness among the replicates of the same and different genotypes.

3.6 Dendrogram Showing the Genetic Relatedness among Replicates of Celosia argentea L. Genotypes

The replicates of Celosia argentea genotypes grouped into three different clusters are shown in Fig. 2. Group 1 is the largest cluster of 20 which comprises; NHGB/01260 (R1), NHGB/01260 (R3),NIHORT/0001


166

(R2), NIHORT/0001 (R3), NIHORT/0001 (R1), NHGB/01260 (R2), NHGB/01260 (R4), NG/SA/07/213 (R1), NHGB/09/160 (R3), NG/MAY/09/015 (R3),NG/SA/07/213 (R2), NG/SA/07/213 (R4), NHGB/09/160 (R1), NHGB/09/160 (R4), NG/MAY/09/015 (R1), NG/MAY/09/015 (R4), NG/SA/07/213 (R4),NHGB/09/160 (R2), NG/MAY/09/015(R2), and NG/SA/07/213 (R3), followed by cluster group 2 comprising of ; NG/MR/MAY/09/015 (R1), NG/MR/MAY/09/015 (R2), NG/MA/MAY/09/015

(R2), NG/MR/MAY/09/015 (R3), NG/SA/07/213 (R3), NG/MA/MAY/09/015 (R1), NG/MA/MAY/09/015 (R3), NG/MR/MAY/09/015 (R4), NG/MA/MAY/09/015 (R4), NIHORT/0001 (R4), NG/TO/MAY/09/015 (R1), and NG/SA/07/213 (R1), while NG/TO/MAY/09/015 (R2), NG/TO/MAY/09/015 (R3), NG/TO/MAY/09/015 (R4), NG/SA/07/213 (R2), NG/AO/MAY/09/015 (R3), NG/AO/MAY/09/015 (R1), NG/AO/MAY/09/015 (R2) and NG/AO/MAY/09/015 (R4) belong to the least cluster group 3.

Table 5. Principal components analysis (PCA) of Celosia argental genotypes and their replicates

Genotype (Rep) Prin. 1 Prin. 2 NHGB/01260(R1) 0.300 0.559 NHGB/01260(R2) 1.063 0.045 NHGB/01260(R3) -0.289 0.726 NHGB/01260(R4) 0.129 1.696 NG/MR/MAY/09/015(R1) -2.387 -2.127 NG/MR/MAY/09/015(R2) -0.972 -1.651 NG/MR/MAY/09/015(R3) -2.606 -0.805 NG/MR/MAY/09/015(R4) -1.513 0.669 NG/TO/MAY/09/015 (R1) -2.122 -0.360 NG/TO/MAY/09/015 (R2) -0.883 3.519 NG/TO/MAY/09/015 (R3) -2.713 1.071 NG/TO/MAY/09/015 (R4) -2.264 2.296 NG/SA/07/213 (R1) 0.767 -0.432 NG/SA/07/213 (R2) 1.711 2.038 NG/SA/07/213 (R3) -2.225 -0.110 NG/SA/07/213 (R4) 2.385 1.495 NG/MA/MAY/09/015(R1) -2.653 -1.185 NG/MA/MAY/09/015(R2) -1.732 -2.210 NG/MA/MAY/09/015(R3) -2.997 -1.845 NG/MA/MAY/09/015(R4) -2.030 0.164 NHGB/09/160(R1) 0.982 0.119 NHGB/09/160(R2) 3.474 -3.122 NHGB/09/160(R3) 1.302 -1.379 NHGB/09/160(R4) 2.140 -0.635 NIHORT/0001(R1) 1.357 1.118 NIHORT/0001(R2) 0.142 1.270 NIHORT/0001(R3) -0.454 -0.152 NIHORT/0001(R4) -1.876 1.513 NG/MAY/09/015 (R1) 3.992 0.502 NG/MAY/09/015 (R2) 6.705 -1.434 NG/MAY/09/015 (R3) 1.982 0.232 NG/MAY/09/015 (R4) 2.031 0.665 NG/SA/07/213(R1) -1.673 -1.997 NG/SA/07/213(R2) -0.008 1.398 NG/SA/07/213(R3) 3.814 -0.931 NG/SA/07/213(R4) 1.495 0.480 NG/AO/MAY/09/015(R1) -2.905 -1.435 NG/AO/MAY/09/015(R2) -0.462 -0.660 NG/AO/MAY/09/015(R3) -1.248 0.745 NG/AO/MAY/09/015(R4) 0.242 0.149 Percentage variation (%) 38.62 15.28


167

Fig. 2. Dendrogram showing genetic relatedness among 40 replicates of ten genotypes of Celosia argentea L

Table 6. Mean performance for morphological and yield traits of Celosia argentea L

Genotypes PHF LLF LWF NPB NFP LB FLM PWM SWH RB NHGB/01260 34.15cd 11.00abc 5.05ab 0.00d 0.00b 30.25bc 6.96b 3.01abc 4.03c 19.41b NG/MR/MAY/09/015 31.20cd 5.65de 1.45d 4.00b 1.50ab 14.55c 7.53b 2.64abcd 1.64e 3.71b NG/TO/MAY/09/015 20.35d 7.90cde 3.58bc 5.50a 0.00b 27.57bc 13.39a 2.94abc 7.26b 12.76b NG/SA/07/213 39.45cd 9.60bcd 1.45d 2.00c 1.00b 60.13ab 11.05ab 3.14ab 1.35e 36.34b NG/MA/MAY/09/015 16.95d 4.00e 1.00d 3.00bc 2.00ab 12.70c 6.66b 1.01cd 1.61e 20.53b NHGB/09/160 68.12ab 12.93ab 4.20b 4.00b 2.25ab 30.25bc 7.86b 2.11abcd 1.24e 28.25b NIHORT/0001 45.02c 8.83bcd 3.33bc 0.00d 2.50ab 27.57bc 11.04ab 3.08ab 3.34cd 8.40b NG/MAY/09/015 76.52a 14.83a 6.28a 0.00d 1.75ab 72.56a 10.29ab 1.34bcd 2.46de 78.75a NG/SA/07/213 52.12bc 11.78abc 4.73ab 2.50c 4.50a 75.24a 9.33ab 0.90d 9.16a 32.21b NG/AO/MAY/09/015 29.22cd 6.00de 2.13cd 4.00b 1.75ab 2.57c 7.19b 3.51a 8.11ab 21.30b

Means with the same letter in the same column are not significantly different P ≥ 0.05 according to Pearson’s Duncan multiple range test

PHF: Plant Height at Flowering (cm), LLF: leaf length at flowering (cm), LWF: Leaf width at flowering (cm), NPB: number of primary branches, NFP: number of flower per plant, LB: leaf biomass (g), FLM: fruit length at maturity (cm), PWM: pod weight at

maturity (g), SWH: seed weight at harvest (g), RB: root biomass (g)


168

Table 7. Correlation coefficient among thirteen characters in genotypes of Celosia argentea L

PH RB LL LW NLP SW PHF PWM NPB LWF LLF LB FLM

RB 0.00ns LL 0.00ns 0.00ns LW 0.00ns 0.00ns 0.00ns NLP 0.00ns 0.01ns 0.01ns 0.00ns SW 0.94** 0.63* 0.90** 0.46ns 0.54* PHF 0.00ns 0.00ns 0.00ns 0.00ns 0.00ns 0.85** PWM 0.78** 0.60* 0.15ns 0.07ns 0.91** 0.42ns 0.82** NPB 0.90** 0.92** 0.94** 0.95** 0.12ns 0.07ns 0.96ns 0.33ns LWF 0.02ns 0.00ns 0.00ns 0.00ns 0.20ns 0.37ns 0.0ns 0.52* 1.00** LLF 0.00ns 0.00ns 0.00ns 0.00ns 0.03ns 0.57ns 0.00ns 0.39ns 0.99** 0.00ns LB 0.22ns 0.36ns 0.01ns 0.29ns 0.28ns 0.40ns 0.02ns 0.77** 0.87** 0.11ns 0.03ns FLM 0.91** 0.14ns 0.24ns 0.15ns 0.96** 0.23ns 0.17ns 0.02ns 0.64* 0.01ns 0.01ns 0.63*

ns = non significant, * = Significant at 5%, **= significant at 1% level of probability PH: Plant height, RB: Root biomass, LL: Leaf length, LW: Leaf width (cm), NLP: Number of leaf per plant, SWH: Seed weight at Harvest, PHF: Plant Height at Flowering, PWM: Pod weight at maturity, NPB: Number of primary branches, LWF: Leaf width at

flowering, LLF: Leaf length at flowering, LB: Leaf biomass, FLM: Fruit length at maturity. 4. CONCLUSION Research and farming activities have denied Nigeria germplasm of leafy vegetables, therefore leading to loss of useful plant materials and genetic erosion of leafy crop. The selection of potential diverse genotypes from all collections will facilitate the enhanced utilization of germplasm in breeding programs, thereby ensuring the sustainability and conservation of germplasm collections. This study revealed that plant height, number of branches, seed weight per plant, fruit length at maturity, and leaf biomass yield per plant could be selected for improvement as they exhibited high linear relationships. There are variability in morphological and yield components in this study. The performances of NG/MAY/09/015, NG/SA/07/213, NG/AO/MAY/ 09/015 and NG/TO/MAY/09/015 for all the quantitative and qualitative traits suggested that these genotypes could be promising for future breeding program of the crop. Therefore, the pathogenic variability of pests and diseases that could likely interact with these genotypes could be further explored to broaden the scope of the study. Further studies on molecular markers will provide more information on genetic diversity based on geographical classifications with respect to morphological and yield traits. This will ensure germplasm conservation and development of strategies in improvement of Celosia argental L.

COMPETING INTERESTS Authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

REFERENCES 1. Grubben GJH, Denton OA. Vegetable Plant

resources of Tropical Africa 2. PROTA Foundation, Wageningen, Netherlands/ Backhuys Publishes Leiden, Netherlands/ CTA, Wageningen, Netherlands. 2004; 217– 221.

2. Denton OA. Celosia argentea L. [Internet] Record from PROTA4U. Plant Resources of Tropical Africa, Wageningen, Netherlands. 2004;167-171.

3. Shah K, Mamta B, Patel N, Malati GC. Contribution to indigenous drugs part I: Celosia argentea. College of Pharmacy, Ahmedabad, 380 009, India. 1993;31(3): 223-234.

4. Kolawole E, Law-Ogbomo, Peter AE. Growth and herbage yield of Celosia argentea L. as influenced by plant density and NPK fertilization in degraded soil. Trop. Subtrop. Agroecosyst. 2011;14:251–260.

5. Mohammadi SA, Prasanna BM. Analysis of genetic diversity in crop plants- salient Statistical Tools and Considerations. Crop Sci. 2003;43:1235–1248.

6. Nwangburuka CC, Olawuyi OJ, Kehinde O, Kayode OO, Denton OA, Daramola SD, Awotade D. Effect of Arburscular mycorrhizea (AM), poultry manure (PM), NPK fertilizer and the combination of AM-PM on the growth and yield of okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) Nature and Science. 2012;10(9):34-44.

7. Olawuyi OJ, Bello OB, Ntube CV, Akanmu AO. Progress from selection of some maize cultivars’ response to drought in the derived


169

savanna of Nigeria. J. Agric. Sci. 2015;37(1): 8-17.

8. Jonathan SG, Olawuyi OJ, Babalola BJ. Morpho-agronomic variability and correlation studies of Telfairia occidentalis hook (pumpkin) in some selected local governments of Ibadan, Nigeria. 47th Annual Conference of the Agricultural Society of Nigeria. 2013; 321-327.

9. Olawuyi OJ, Jonathan SG, Babatunde FE, Babalola BJ, Yaya OS, Agbolade JO,

Aina DA, Egun CJ. Accession x treatment interaction, variability and correlation studies of pepper (Capsicum spp.) under the influence of Arbuscular Mycorrhiza Fungus (Glomus clarum) and Cow Dung. Am. J. Plant Sci. 2014;5:683-690.

10. Olawuyi OJ, Fawole I. Studies on genetic variability of some quantitative and qualitative characters in pigeon pea – Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp. Journal of Life and Physical Sciences. ActaSatech. 2005;2(1):30-36.

__________________________________________________________________________________________ © Copyright International Knowledge Press. All rights reserved.