Greener
Journal of  Agricultural Sciences

Vol. 3 (6), pp.
476-491, June 2013.

 ISSN: 2276-7770  

Research
Paper

Manuscript Number: 030613516

 

Genetic Analysis of
Vegetative-Stage Drought Tolerance in Cowpea

 

Alidu M. S.^1a, Atokple I. D. K.^2*
and Akromah R.^1b

 

[1]Crop
Science Dept.,Faculty
of Agriculture, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and
Technology, Private Mail Bag, Kumasi.
2CSIR-Savannah
Agricultural Research Institute, Tamale.

 

Emails: a.sanatu @ yahoo.com^1a,
rakromah @ yahoo. com^1b

 

*Corresponding Author’s Email: idkatokple @ yahoo. com

Abstract:

The continued improvement in the yield of cowpea for the
semi-arid regions where it is a dominant crop will record
rapid progress if the genetic basis for yield under
different moisture regimes is better understood. This study
investigated the genetic combining abilities and heterosis
for grain yield, yield components, flowering and biomass
production among diallel hybrids derived from nine cowpea
genotypes. Results showed that moisture stress significantly
reduced grain yield, biomass production, and number of pods
per plant. Only for grain yield was a significant
interaction observed for moisture regimes. Genetic control
for grain size, number of seeds per pod and days to
flowering was dominated by additive genetic effects. For
grain yield, both additive and non-additive genetic effects
were dominant. The genetic control of yield under the two
soil moisture conditions indicated that grain yield
improvement will be more challenging for drought prone
regions. Nonetheless, careful selection of genotypes that
have complementary but different alleles for yield under
different soil moisture conditions might permit yield
improvement through recurrent selection. This study has
identified parental lines, developed populations, and
provided a breeding strategy for developing cowpea cultivars
with higher grain yield for Guinea and Sudan savannah
regions of West Africa.
 
Keywords: Cowpea, Drought, Tolerance, Combining
Abilities, Heterosis, Diallel Hybrids, Heritability,Trait
Correlation

Return to Content   View 
Reprint
(PDF) (336KB)