Evaluation of Seed Yield of Nigerian Bambara Groundnut [Vigna subterranea (L.) Verdc.] Landraces under Varying Water Conditions

Abstract

Seed yield of selected Nigerian Bambara Groundnut landraces under two varying water conditions was evaluated. Twenty eight (28) Bambara groundnut accessions were planted in a randomized complete block design with two treatments (Nonwater stressed and Water stressed) and replicated five times. The experiment was conducted at the Experimental Garden of the Department of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Technology, Minna, Niger State. The accessions were planted in planting bags during the cropping season of 2016 between July and October. The two treatments were rain fed until maturity except during the period of exposure to water stress where the water stressed plants were transferred to a screen house made with polyvinyl ceiling to prevent water during the flowering stage for two weeks. It was observed that water stress reduced the yield of the Bambara groundnut landraces by 47%. Accessions NGB-01646-B, NGR-NI-20-H and NGB-01491 which had relatively high yield in the stressed and non-water stressed condition were considered the most drought tolerant accessions and accession NGR-KG-02-C with low yield both in stressed and non-stressed conditions was identified as the most susceptible accession. Accessions which had high yield only in water stressed conditions could serve as elite line for Bambara groundnut for areas which have problem of drought. These drought tolerant accessions identified in the research can serve as potential parent lines in breeding programmes aimed at the development of drought tolerant varieties of Bambara groundnut.

Evaluation of ten bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranean (L.) Verdc.) Accessions to drought stress at Sahelian zone of Niger

“…Furthermore, the correlations, which are positive between the yields obtained under stress-free growth conditions and negative between the yields obtained under stress conditions and the tolerance index, imply that a selection based on this index will lead to a drop in yield even in crop conditions without water stress. Similar results were reported by Farshadfar et al, (2012), Abejide et al, (2017), Abebe et al, (2020. Mean productivity, water stress tolerance index and yield index had significant positive correlations with yields under stress and non-stress conditions.…”

Bambara Groundnut (Vigna subterranea L. Verdc): A Crop for the New Millennium, Its Genetic Diversity, and Improvements to Mitigate Future Food and Nutritional Challenges

“…According to a survey, planting time has an effect on Bambara groundnut yield. Maximum yields were reported during the dry season, which had lower rainfall than the primary rainy season [52]. In comparison to forest climatic zones, the yield of Bambara groundnut is recorded as high in the alternation of agricultural climate with high temperature and low precipitation [36].…”

Exploration of Bambara Groundnut (Vigna subterranea (L.) Verdc.), an Underutilized Crop, to Aid Global Food Security: Varietal Improvement, Genetic Diversity and Processing

“…The finding also reported that cultivating Bambara groundnut at the right time in the forest zone could give relatively higher yields. Another important attribute of Bambara groundnut is the availability of genotypes with varying maturity periods, ranging from 3 to 6 months, which makes it suitable for production and harvesting all year round, while minimizing yield loss [120].…”