Character Association Studies in Groundnut ( Arachis hypogaea L.)

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the degree of relationship and association amongst morphological characters of groundnut as an important food crop in Nigeria. 118 cultivars were planted in a completely randomized design structure. Characterization was based on qualitative and quantitative evaluations of 62 characters. Data were analysed on the SPSS software (20.0 versions). Correlation tools were applied using Spearman, Kendall and Pearson methods. Level of relationship was determined based on the strength of coefficients R. Dependence among traits was tested using the Chi square. Multiple regression analysis was carried out in a predictive model. As a result, many of the traits are very weakly correlated. Day to emergence has no effect on Day to 50% flowering (R = 0.237, p < 0.05) and number of flower (R = 0.221, p < 0.05). Day to first flowering weakly correlates with maturity time of the plant (R = 0.39, p < 0.01) but no effect on the yield...