Suitability of chrysanthemum (Dendranthema grandiflora Tzvelev) genotypes for the plains of Kerala

Abstract

Chrysanthemum (Dendranthema grandiflora Tzvelev) is a herbaceous perennial flowering crop commercially cultivated for cut flower and loose flower production in India. The flowers are highly prized for their unique forms, sizes, shapes and their distinctness in various floral colours. This crop holds great potential for commercial cultivation due to its early blooming habit, effective propagation techniques and ease of handling in cultural practices. The successful cultivation of chrysanthemum mainly depends on the selection of suitable varieties, therefore, evaluation of suitable cultivars for particular region is of utmost importance. However, there has not been an attempt to study the suitability of chrysanthemum as a floriculture crop in Kerala. Hence the present proposed programme would help to select suitable types for cultivation in the warm humid climate of Kerala. The experimental study entitled “Suitability of chrysanthemum (Dendranthema grandiflora Tzvelev) genotypes for the plains of Kerala” was conducted in the Department of Floriculture and Landscaping, College of Agriculture, Vellanikkara with an objective to evaluate the performance of different genotypes of chrysanthemum and to select suitable cultivars for different purposes such as cut flower, loose flower and potted plants. Fifteen genotypes of chrysanthemum viz. Karnool Pink, Dolley Orange, Autumn Joy, Roopanjali, Coffee, Pink Cloud, KAU C-1, KAU C-2, KAU C-3, KAU C-4, KAU C-5, KAU C-6, KAU C-7, KAU C-8 and KAU C-9 were evaluated for vegetative, floral and post harvest parameters.

Significant variations for various vegetative, floral and post harvest parameters were recorded among the fifteen genotypes of chrysanthemum. The greatest plant height was observed in the genotype Coffee (45.96 cm) which was on par with KAU C- 5 (44.84 cm). The genotype KAU C-7 was found promising in terms of plant spread (47.95 cm), number of primary branches per plant (17.50) and number of leaves per branch (21.50) followed by Dolley Orange with 16.00 number of branches per plant and Roopanjali with 20.00 number of leaves per branch. Floral characters showed significant difference for all the flowering parameters. Among the fifteen genotypes, the bud initiation was observed only in twelve genotypes excluding Autumn Joy, Coffee and KAU C-5. The earliest flower bud initiation and 50 per cent flowering was recorded in the genotype KAU C-1 (38.85 and 42.80 days)

which was on par with KAU C-4 (38.95 and 43.20 days), Karnool Pink (39.95 and 46.61 days) and KAU C-8 (41.65 and 44.20 days) respectively. In genotypes viz. Dolley Orange, Roopanjali and KAU C-9 the flower buds were withered and failed to open. The genotype KAU C-4 had the maximum duration of flowering period (104.29 days) followed by Karnool Pink (101.52 days). Significantly the greatest flower diameter was recorded in Karnool Pink (8.35 cm) which was followed by KAU C-4 (7.11 cm), KAU C-1 (6.88cm) and KAU C-6 (6.56 cm). The flower stalk length was found significantly greatest in KAU C-6 (26.77 cm) followed by Karnool Pink (24.07 cm) and KAU C-4 (21.85 cm). Significantly highest flower weight was recorded in the genotype Karnool Pink (8.07 g). More field life of an individual flower was observed in Karnool Pink (12.37 days) followed by KAU C-7 (11.56 days). The genotype KAU C-4 recorded more number of flowers per plant and highest flower yield per plant (96.95 and 0.31 kg) which was on par with KAU C-1 (79.55 and 0.27 kg) and KAU C-6 (70.45 and 0.25 kg) respectively. Longest shelf life and vase life was recorded in the genotype KAU C-7 (4.89 days) and KAU C-3 (14.48 days) respectively. Wide variance was seen across the fifteen genotypes, which differed considerably for all of the characters evaluated. Estimation of genetic parameters revealed the high range of heritability (>90 %) and high genetic advance (>20%) for all the characters, indicating additive gene effect and ample scope for selection and improvement. The genetic correlation coefficient was greater than the equivalent phenotypic correlation coefficient, indicating negligible environmental influence on performance of genotypes. Correlation and path coefficient analysis indicated that the parameters such as number of primary branches per plant, duration of flowering, number of flowers per plant, flower stalk girth and flower weight were having positive and significant correlation with flower yield per plant with a direct effect. Ranking of genotypes was done individually for cut flower and loose flower types. As a result, the genotypes KAU C-4 and KAU C-6 can be recommended for both cut flower and loose flower purpose whereas the genotypes Karnool Pink, KAU C-1, KAU C-7, KAU C-3, KAU C-8 and KAU C-2 are best preferred for loose flower purpose and based on morphological and floral characters the genotype Pink Cloud was found ideal for both garden type and loose flower production.