Genetic diversity characterization of Wood apple (Feronia sps.) for identification of superior genotypes

Abstract

Wood apple fruit is a hard shelled many seeded berry with its pinkish brown aromatic soursweet pulp being the edible portion. Total eleven (11) numbers of wood apple plants were stratified from different agroclimatic zones of West Bengal depending on availability of fruit crop and convenience of the study at Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia, West Bengal during the years 2013-2015. Under the observation for characterization, the plant physical parameters has been analyzed with the help of Biodiversity International Tropical Fruit Descriptor (NBPGR) and so for preliminary evaluation, fruit physical parameters and fruit biochemical parameters has been analyzed. During the course of survey the tree age of wood apple varied from 15yrs to above 40yrs in age at different germplasm in which the height and trunk girth varied from 10m to above 20m and 88.2 cm to 157.4 cm. Branching pattern and crown shape was observed to be irregular in all the accessions whereas, tree growth habit varied from erect to spreading type. Leaf characters in wood apple reveals obovate leaf blade shape, obtuse to retuse leaf apex, cuneate leaf base, odd pinnate leaf orientation and pinnate leaf venation. Length of the leaf blade ranges from 3.05 cm to 4.12 cm and breadth varies from 1.06 cm to 3.08 cm. Maximum fruit length was recorded in ACC-8 (8.04 cm) and breadth of 7.96 cm in ACC-6. Maximum fruit weight (306.02 g), peel weight (73.68 g) and number of seeds (28.42) was from the ACC-4. Maximum total sugar 28.57 mg/100 gm pulp (ACC-1), reducing sugar 13.88 mg/100 gm (ACC-4), acidity 1.77 mg/100 gm (ACC-5) and Vit. C 102.04 mg/100 gm (ACC-2) has been recorded. Average linkage technique clustering when applied on squared Euclidean distance matrix a total of 6 clusters were formed for plant physical parameters, a total of 7 clusters were formed for fruit physical parameters and a total of 6 clusters were formed for fruit biochemical parameters.