Formulation of flowering index, morphological relationships, and yield prediction system in true garlic aerial seed bulbil production

Abstract

The phenomenon of flowering and aerial bulbil production in Asiatic garlic was observed under long photoperiodic conditions of Ladakh, India. Flowers were sterile and the bulbils produced on the umbel were true to type. Observations on a large number of flowering and nonflowering plants have led to the formulation of a precise flowering index (FI) in garlic. Plants with a minimum leaf number of 7, height 25 cm, collar width 0.6 cm, bulb diameter 3.7 cm, bulb weight 22.5 g, and functional leaf area of 182.4 cm2 had only shown the flowering. The flowering index formulated was a product of leaf number, plant height, functional leaf area, and bulb weight. For flowering, FI should be more than 788, and availability of a minimum photoperiod of 4020 hours during a growth period of 11 months was another prerequisite. Nonfulfillment of any one of the factors of flowering, although FI and photoperiod were satisfactory, led to nonflowering. Garlic aerial bulbil yield was positively correlated with leaf number, plant height, bulb weight, bulb diameter, length of flower stalk, 100 seed weight, and head diameter. Following the multiple regression model y = -11.9 - (0.00031 x number of bulbils) + (0.147 x 100 bulbil weight) + (4.95 x head diameter) + (0.0460 x length of flower stalk), aerial bulbil yield prediction was possible at a mean accuracy of 87%.