Identification of Promising Moisture Stress-tolerant Genotypes in Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) Using Seed Yield and Stress Tolerance Indices
Anil Choudhary
Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Bundelkhand University, Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Mahipt Singh
Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Bundelkhand University, Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Mousmi Syed *
Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Bundelkhand University, Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh, India.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Moisture stress is one of the major abiotic constraints affecting crop productivity, and the identification of genotypes capable of maintaining yield under limited moisture is an important objective of crop improvement programmes. The present investigation was undertaken to evaluate twelve fenugreek genotypes for seed yield performance under non-stress and moisture-stress conditions and to identify promising genotypes using different moisture stress tolerance indices. Seed yield per plant was recorded under both environments and the indices of tolerance (TOL), mean productivity (MP), stress tolerance index (STI), stress susceptibility index (SSI) and geometric mean productivity (GMP) were estimated. Seed yield per plant ranged from 7.97 to 12.40 g under non-stress conditions and from 6.18 to 9.91 g under moisture-stress conditions. The mean seed yield decreased from 9.86 g under non-stress conditions to 7.79 g under moisture-stress conditions, representing an average reduction of 21.09 per cent. AFG-4 recorded the highest seed yield under both non-stress (12.40 g) and moisture-stress (9.91 g) conditions. RMT-303 showed the lowest yield reduction (18.94%) and the lowest SSI (0.90). AFG-4 recorded the highest MP (11.16), STI (1.26) and GMP (11.09). Based on the combined performance of seed yield and stress tolerance indices, AFG-4 and RMT-303 were identified as comparatively promising genotypes, followed by Azad Metni, Hisar Mukta and HM-9. The results indicated substantial variability among the genotypes in their responses to moisture stress and demonstrated the usefulness of combining yield performance with multiple stress tolerance indices for genotype identification. The promising genotypes identified in the present study may be further evaluated across environments and moisture-stress levels for their potential utilisation in fenugreek breeding programmes.
Keywords: Fenugreek, moisture stress, drought tolerance, seed yield, TOL, MP, STI, SSI, GMP, genotype evaluation