Germplasm characterization in eggplant (Solanum melongena L.)

Abstract

Brinjal (Solanum melongena L.) is an important solanaceous vegetable in many countries of Asia and Africa. Assessment of genetic resources is the starting point of any crop improvement programme. In the present study, 192 accessions of eggplant were evaluated for ten quantitative and eleven qualitative characters. A significant difference was observed in all characters. The wide regional variations for plant, flower and fruit descriptors revealed enough scope for improvement of yield characters by selection. The genetic differences among the genotypes are potentially relevant to breeding programmes in that the variability created through hybridization of the contrasting forms could be exploited.