Genetic Diversity of Elite Faba Bean (<i>Vicia faba</i> L.) Genotypes Based on Agronomic Traits and Soil Acidity Stress Indices

Abstract

Faba bean plays an important role in human food, animal feed and soil fertility restoration. However, its productivity is low due to soil acidity problem in the central highlands of Ethiopia. Hence, this study was designed to know the genetic diversity existing among 50 elite faba bean genotypes tested at three locations (Holetta, Watebecha Minjaro and Jeldu) in 2017 using randomized complete block design with three replications. The genetic distances estimated by Euclidean distances ranged from 1.55 to 15.60. The 50 genotypes were grouped in to 10 distinct clusters by Unweighted Pair group Method with Arithmetic Means clustering method based on Euclidian distances matrix estimated from overall mean of genotypes for 19 traits over locations and soil managements. Among the 10 clusters 5 were solitary (III, VI, VIII, IX and X) including the best and least performing genotypes CS20DK (IX) and Wayu (X), respectively. Cluster II consisted of soil acidity stress tolerance genotypes. The results of the first three principal components (PC) analysis accounted 84.32% of the total variations observed among genotypes of which PC1 and PC2 contributed 45.8 and 25.36%, respectively. In each PC single or few traits were not identified as having much contribution than others traits. In conclusion, cluster IX was found as best of all the other clusters in most of traits performance and genotypes grouped under cluster II, VI and VIII needs further evaluation to obtain genotypes with lowest relative yield reduction and stress susceptible index and resistant to chocolate spot disease with other desirable agronomic traits.