Exotic Genotypes Research Articles

Studies on performance of certain indigenous and exotic coconut genotypes [Cocos nucifera L.

A performance evaluation study was undertaken with 14 coconut genotypes which include eleven tall and three dwarf genotypes. Among the 14 coconut genotypes, eight exotic and six indigenous were from diverse geographical origins. All the coconut genotypes showed variation for yield, yield contributing characters and quality traits. East Coast Tall recorded maximum plant height while Laccadive Ordinary recorded maximum stem girth. With respect to leaf characters, Philippines Ordinary recorded maximum number of leaves while Jamaica Tall recorded maximum petiole length followed by Fiji Tall. With respect to the flowering traits, Philippines Ordinary recorded the maximum number of inflorescence per palm. The tall genotype, Laccadive micro recorded maximum number of female flowers. Length of stalk was highest in tall genotype Strait Settlement Green. Exotic tall genotype, Jamaica Tall recorded maximum spadix length. For the yield characters, Laccadive Ordinary recorded the highest number of bunch per palm per year by followed by Jamaica tall while Laccadive Micro recorded maximum number of nuts per bunch, number of nut per palm followed by Andaman Ordinary. For the nut characters studied, the exotic tall coconut genotype Jamaica Tall recorded maximum whole nut weight, dehusked nut weight, husk weight, husk thickness, kernel weight, shell weight, shell thickness followed by Laccadive Ordinary and Philippines Ordinary. On the other hand, Laccadive Ordinary recorded maximum kernel thickness and nut length. Andaman Ordinary recorded maximum nut breadth followed by Philippines Ordinary. With respect to quality traits, the indigenous tall genotypes Andaman Ordinary recorded maximum copra content and in case of oil content Laccadive Ordinary recorded maximum followed by Andaman Ordinary.

Evaluation of Common Bean Cultivars Resistance to the Bean Common Mosaic Necrosis Virus in Western Kenya

The common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), is a high protein crop and the main legume in the cropping system of western Kenya. Despite its importance, common bean yields are low (<1.0 t/ha) and declining. Bean Common mosaic virus (BCMV) and Bean common mosaic necrosis virus (BCMNV) are the most common and most destructive and can cause a yield loss as high as 100%. In Kenya, limited cultivars and exotic genotypes with resistance to BCMV and BCMNV strains have been reported. Reports indicate BCMNV being a widespread virus compared to BCMV in western Kenya. This study therefore, sought to screen popular cultivars for resistance to the virus. Sixteen popularly grown bean cultivars together with cowpea (Vigna unguiculata), soybean (Glycine max) and groundnut (Arachis hypogaea) were planted in a green house in a completely randomized block design with three replicates. The plants were inoculated with BCMNV Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) positive isolate at 3-leaf stage. Data was taken weekly for 3 weeks on type of symptoms expressed and number of plants infected. Ten bean cultivars were susceptible, 4 tolerant and 2 resistant. For improved yields of common bean, farmers should be advised to plant certified seeds for all legumes in the cropping system.

Evaluation of indigenous and exotic tall and dwarf coconut genotypes for quality tender coconut water trade

Evaluation of indigenous and exotic tall and dwarf coconut genotypes for quality tender coconut water trade

Correlation between cucumber genotype and resistance to damping-off disease caused by Phytophthora melonis

Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) damping-off disease caused by Phytophthora melonis is a limiting factor affecting cucurbit production. This study assessed a collection of 38 domestic and exotic commercial cucumber genotypes for damping-off resistance at transplanting and 50% flowering. Plants were classified using a four-score scale, the average damping-off percentage ranging from 7.92% (resistant) to 88.01% [highly susceptible (HS)]. Most of the genotypes were susceptible and HS to P. melonis. These genotypes were analyzed with 15 inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) markers. A total of 317 bands were produced, of which 297 bands (93.69%) were polymorphic. The primer ISSR29 possessed the highest resolving power, polymorphic information content and marker index value, which could be the most informative primer for distinguishing cucumber genotypes. Cluster analysis and principal component analysis were carried out and there was a probable connection between cucumber genotypes and resistance level against P. melonis, indicating possible application for ISSR in studying disease resistance of cucumber and producing cultivars that resist damping-off. The expression of three candidate genes probably involved in the defence against P. melonis was quantified by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction in five cucumber genotypes showing different susceptibility to the pathogen. CsWRKY20, CsLecRK6.1 and LOX1 genes were differentially expressed depending on genotype in early stages of infection. LOX1 was the most expressed gene across experiments and the one that best discriminated between susceptible and resistant genotypes. These results are a valuable resource for future functional genomics studies to unravel the molecular mechanisms of C. sativus/P. melonis interaction.

Performance of Exotic Sweet Orange Genotypes at Dhankuta, Nepal

The study was conducted to evaluate the varietal performance of sweet orange genotypes at National Citrus Research Program, Dhankuta, Nepal during 2015. Twenty 20 exotic as well as local genotypes planted in 2005 were evaluated for their fruit physio-chemical characteristics at their 10-years aged. Three genotypes: Malta Blood Red, Dhankuta Local and Valencia Late have resulted as superior genotypes for fruit yield characteristics. Some genotypes Delicious Seedless, Salustiana and Hamlin also exhibited excellent performance for their fruit size and weight; however these genotypes produced lower fruit number per plant. Pineapple, Meisheu-9, and Washington Navel had higher TSS. There was similar fruit maturity period commenced from 14 November to 28 December among the genotypes. Based on the results, the genotypes showing distinct characteristics of fruit yield and quality including fruit maturity period should be promoted to make variety diversity in Nepal.&#x0D; Int. J. Appl. Sci. Biotechnol. Vol 6(4): 308-312

Adult Plant Resistance to Stem Rust and Molecular Marker Analysis of some Egyptian and Exotic Bread Wheat Genotypes

Stem rust caused by Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici is the most dangerous and common disease among global wheat cultivars. Twelve local Egyptian and four exotic genotypes of bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) obtained from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) were evaluated under Egyptian field conditions for adult plant resistance (APR) levels to stem rust at Sakha location during the two successive growing seasons (2015/16 and 2016/17). Also, DNA characterization for genotypes by specific markers were tested to determine the presence of the effective resistance genes (Sr's); Sr22, Sr24, Sr25 and Sr26. Out of the tested genotypes, four Egyptian bread wheat cultivars; (Misr3, Sakha94, Gemmeiza9 and Gemmeiza11), and four of CIMMYT lines (Line6043, Line6091, Line6107 and Line6197) show high levels of adult plant resistance to stem rust. Among the tested genotypes, Sr22 found to be the most frequent gene, present in most of them. While, Sr24 was present only in one local wheat cultivar and two exotic lines. Sr25 was present in five local wheat cultivars and two exotic lines. In addition, a resistance gene Sr26 was present in three exotic lines. The obtained results in this study evince that a combination of two or more resistance genes in one cultivar confer high adult plant resistance level in this cultivar, under field condition.

English

The basic aim of this study is to evaluate the exotic lentil germplasm (BIGMP LIEN-MH-18) received from ICARDA. Economically desirable characters were studied and correlated to select the genotypes for the targeted breeding programme. Thirty-six lentil exotic entries were studied. The exotic genotypes 36102 and 36108 yielded 665 and 625 kg/ha respectively similar to our local recommended check (Punjab Masoor-09) that produces 884 kg ha-1 seed yield. There were high differences for the traits that were studied. The number of pods per plant, plant stand and first pod height were significantly (P < 0.05) associated with yield. The plant height was non-significantly associated with yield while number of branches was negatively and non-significantly associated with yield. Disease attack was negative and highly significant. This association of the characters could be used in future breeding programs to enhance the yield potential for exploiting the production of the lentil crop. Key words: Lentil, correlation, exotic germplasm, yield

Analysis of genetic variability and genotype × environment interactions for iron and zinc content among diverse genotypes of lentil

Deficiencies of iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn) are major problems in developing countries especially for woman and preschool children. Biofortification of staple food crops is a sustainable approach to improve human mineral intake via daily diet. Objectives of this study were to (1) determine the genetic variability for Fe and Zn content in cultivated indigenous and exotic lentil genotypes, and (2) determine the effect of genetic (G) × environmental (E) interaction on Fe and Zn content in 96 lentil genotypes grown in India over the 2years. Significant genetic variability was observed for Fe and Zn content in lentil genotypes. Content ranged from 71.3 to 126.2mg/kg for Fe, and 40.1 to 63.6mg/kg for Zn. For Fe, cultivars and parental lines (71.3-126.2mg/kg) showed slightly higher content than the breeding lines (76.8-124.3mg/kg). For Zn, content were similar for both cultivars and breeding lines. However, year and the genotype × year interaction were significant for both Fe and Zn. Broad sense heritability estimates were found to be 45.8, 45.4 and 40.1 for Fe; 30.0, 63.0 and 69.0 for Zn content in breeding lines, cultivars/parental lines, and exotic lines, respectively. These heritability estimates indicated the potential of these lentil genotypes towards genetic improvement for increased Fe and Zn content using hybridization and selection over several generations. Significant positive correlation of Fe content and seed weight suggested a selection strategy for developing large seeded lentil for accumulation of more Fe in the seeds. No correlation was observed between Fe and Zn content. Further, recombination of Fe and Zn content is possible by developing recombination breeding. Thus present study findings would be useful in future for mapping and tagging the genes/QTL controlling Fe and Zn content and developing the improved biofortified cultivars.

Assessment of genetic diversity in Egyptian barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) genotypes using SSR and SNP markers

A barley core collection can be studied extensively and the derived information can be used to identify loci/genes for the genetic improvement of quantitative and qualitative traits. To assess genetic diversity, allelic variation and population structure of Egyptian barley, 134 barley genotypes collected from a different region along with 19 cultivated genotypes obtained from of the Egyptian Agricultural Research Center. All genotypes were analyzed with 261 polymorphic SSR and SNP alleles. The mean number of alleles per locus was 4 and PIC was 0.49, while the level of genetic diversity was 0.55 ranging from 0.03 to 0.82. The genotypes were assigned to three subpopulations that were consistent with their origins. The genetic variation within population was higher (51%) than among population at the molecular levels (FST = 0.491 when P < 0.10). The level of polymorphic variation was highest in subpopulations-II, due to collected from different regions with different ear-types thus, expected to contain more diversity than local genotypes in subpopulations-I and subpopulations-III. The structured study found that the 153 barley genotypes are in harmony with clustering approaches using the SSR and SNP genotypic data in a neighbor-joining tree and principal components analysis, which identified three subpopulations. These results demonstrated genetic diversity among the Egyptian barley genotypes can be applied to suggest approaches, such as association analysis, classical mapping population development, and parental line selection in breeding programs. Therefore, it is necessary to use the exotic genotypes as the genetic resources for developing new barley cultivars in Egypt.

Genome-wide association of yield traits in a nested association mapping population of barley reveals new gene diversity for future breeding.

To explore wild barley as a source of useful alleles for yield improvement in breeding, we have carried out a genome-wide association scan using the nested association mapping population HEB-25, which contains 25 diverse exotic barley genomes superimposed on an ~70% genetic background of cultivated barley. A total of 1420 HEB-25 lines were trialled for nine yield-related grain traits for 2 years in Germany and Scotland, with varying N fertilizer application. The phenotypic data were related to genotype scores for 5398 gene-based single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers. A total of 96 quantitative trait locus (QTL) regions were identified across all measured traits, the majority of which co-localize with known major genes controlling flowering time (Ppd-H2, HvCEN, HvGI, VRN-H1, and VRN-H3) and spike morphology (VRS3, VRS1, VRS4, and INT-C) in barley. Fourteen QTL hotspots, with at least three traits coinciding, were also identified, several of which co-localize with barley orthologues of genes controlling grain dimensions in rice. Most of the allele effects are specific to geographical location and/or exotic parental genotype. This study shows the existence of beneficial alleles for yield-related traits in exotic barley germplasm and provides candidate alleles for future improvement of these traits by the breeder.

Assessment of genetic diversity and population structure in gladiolus (Gladiolus hybridus Hort.) by ISSR markers.

ISSR (Inter simple sequence repeat) markers were used to assess the genetic diversity and population structure in 53 indigenous and exotic genotypes of gladiolus (Gladiolus hybridus Hort.). Molecular markers analysis showed PIC ranges from 0.42 (ISSR 861) to 0.99 (ISSR 855, ISSR 856 and ISSR 889) with an average 0.812, marker index ranged from 0.99 (ISSR 889) to 9.26 (ISSR 851) with an average 4.66 and resolving power of the primers ranged from 0.03 (ISSR 889) to 11.58 (ISSR 861) with an average value 3.80. The dendrogram based UPGMA clustering showed that all the 53 genotypes grouped into three main clusters. Nei's gene diversity (Na) varied from 0.929 to 1.717, effective number of alleles (Ne) varied from 1.262 to 1.369, Shannon's information index (I) ranged from 0.251 to 0.359 and gene diversity (He) was in the range from 0.167 to 0.229. Population structure analysis revealed three groups in which 32 genotypes were admixture types.

EVALUATION PERFORMANCE GENOTYPES OF BREAD WHEAT TO YIELD, YIELD COMPONENTS, BIOLOGICAL YIELD AND HARVEST INDEX

A field experiments were carried out at Abu- Graib Research Station- Agricultural Research Office- Ministry of Agriculture, during the season 2014- 2015 to investigate the performance of 225 pure lines of bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), which at sixth generation after crossing among local and exotic genotypes (produced from 2008 to 2014) with their parents. The experiment was conducted using Simple Lattice Design with three replications. The objective of this experiment to evaluate those genotypes for yield and its components. The results were revealed highly significant differences among genotypes in all studied traits. The genotype 99 gave higher number of spikes plant-1 (44.8 spike), genotype 186 superior in grains number spike-1 (82 grain), a higher weight of grain (49.5g) produced by genotype 17 and a higher weight of grains plant-1 (82.8g) produced by genotype 99. The genotypes 149 and 189 gave higher biological yield (90g) plant-1, but the higher percentage of harvest index (46.2%) achieved at genotype 75.

EVALUATION PERFORMANCE OF BREAD WHEAT PURE LINES TO GROWTH TRAITS AND PROLINE

A field experiments were carried out at Abu- Graib Research Station- Agricultural Research Office- Ministry of Agriculture during 2014- 2015 season to investigate the performance of 225 pure lines of bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), which at sixth generation after crossing among local and exotic genotypes (during 2008 to 2014) with their parents. The experiment was conducted using Simple Lattice Design with three replications. The results were revealed highly significant differences among genotypes for all studied traits. The genotypes 39 and 192 had higher number of days to 50% flowering (140 days), the longest period of physiological maturity 159 days of genotype 49. The highest means of flag leaf area (80.4 cm2) were found by genotype 199, the genotype 101 gave higher flag leaf angle (720), the genotype 28 gave higher plant height (94.6 cm), higher number of tillers (47.4 tillers) produced by genotype 99, genotype 207 gave higher length of spike (19.3 cm). The genotype 156 superior in number of spikelet spike-1 and highest proline content (6.91 µ moles mg-1) in flag leaf was found in genotype 39.

Relationship of Parental Genetic Distance with Heterosis and Specific Combining Ability in Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) Based on Phenotypic and Molecular Marker Analysis.

The genetic distance analysis for selection of suitable parents has been established and effectively used in many crops; however, there is dearth of conclusive report of relationship of genetic distance analysis with heterosis in sesame. In the present study, an attempt was made to estimate the associations of genetic distances using SSR (GDSSR), seed-storage protein profiling (GDSDS) and agro-morphological traits (GDMOR) with hybrid performance. Seven parents were selected from 60 exotic and Indian genotypes based on genetic distance from clustering pattern based on SSR, seed-storage protein, morphological traits and per se performance. For combining ability analysis, 7 parents and 21 crosses generated from 7×7 half diallel evaluated at two environments in a replicated field trial during pre-kharif season of 2013. Compared with the average parents yield (12.57gplant-1), eight hybrids had a significant (P<0.01) yield advantage across environments, with averages of 26.94 and 29.99% for better-parent heterosis (BPH) and mid-parent heterosis (MPH), respectively, across environments. Highly significant positive correlation was observed between specific combining ability (SCA) and per se performance (0.97), while positive non-significant correlation of BPH with GDSSR (0.048), and non-significant negative correlations with GDMOR (-0.01) and GDSDS (-0.256) were observed. The linear regressions of SCA on MPH, BPH and per se performance of F1s were significant with R2 value of 0.88, 0.84 and 0.95 respectively. The present findings revealed a weak association of GDSSR with F1's performance; however, SCA has appeared as an important factor in the determination of heterosis and per se performance of the hybrids. The present findings also indicated that parental divergence in the intermediate group would likely produce high heterotic crosses in sesame.

Genetic evaluation of indigenous and exotic genotypes and hybrids for quantitative and qualitative traits in cucumber

Genetic evaluation of indigenous and exotic genotypes and hybrids for quantitative and qualitative traits in cucumber

Molecular characterization of 5' UTR of the lycopene epsilon cyclase (lcyE) gene among exotic and indigenous inbreds for its utilization in maize biofortification.

Maize grains are the important source of food and energy, but possess very low proA (<2.5µg/g) compared to target level of 15µg/g set by HarvestPlus to alleviate VAD. Favorable allele having variation in 5' untranslated region (UTR) of lycopene epsilon cyclase (lcyE) gene enhances concentration of proA in maize. To identify the sequence variation in 5' UTR of lcyE, a set of diverse 13 inbreds of indigenous and exotic origin was characterized for allelic constitution of lcyE. Inbreds possessed wide variation in proA (1.62-23.12µg/g) with a mean of 9.64µg/g. The proA in CIMMYT-HarvestPlus genotypes having favorable allele of lcyE was very high (22.28µg/g), whereas the Indian inbreds with the same allele possessed very low proA (2.48µg/g). Eight genotypes viz., HKI161, HKI163, HKI161-PV, HKI163-PV, HKI193-1-PV, HKI193-2-PV, HP704-22 and HP704-23 revealed the presence of favorable allele, while VQL1, DMRIL47, MGU-PV-123/C6, HKI193-1 and HKI193-2 showed the presence of unfavorable allele of lcyE gene. Sequence comparison of favorable allele of Indian (HKI161 and HKI163) and exotic genotypes (HP704-22 and HP704-23) revealed seven SNPs having three transitions (SNP1 and SNP3: G to A, SNP2: C to T) and four transversions (SNP4: C to G, SNP5: T to G, SNP6: G to C and SNP7: G to T). Four SNPs (SNP1: position 446, SNP2: position 458, SNP3: position 459 and SNP4: position 483) discriminated the low- and high- proA lines having favorable allele of lcyE 5'TE. These SNPs hold significance in enrichment of proA in maize for marker development and their use in marker-assisted selection.

Genetic diversity and population structure studies of the wild apple genotypes using RAPD markers

The wild apples (Malus sp.) are important genetic resources for apple improvement programmes. In the present investigation, 32 Malus genotypes including indigenous Himalayan crab apples and exotic wild apples collected and maintained in the field gene banks at different ICAR institutes, were selected for genetic diversity and population structure analysis using the RAPD markers. The mean diversity indices, viz., Rp, PIC, EMR and MI of 18 RAPD markers were 5.829, 0.326, 8.432 and 2.851, respectively among the wild Malus genotypes. The cluster analysis segregated the wild Malus genotypes into two major clusters and the Jaccard's similarity coefficient ranged from 0.66 to 0.90. The first three axes of PCoA explained 40.26% variation and AMOVA explained 2% between the indigenous and exotic wild apple genotypes. The model based population structure studies revealed three major populations in the present set of genotypes. It could be concluded that there was substantial level of genetic diversity and population differentiation among the wild apple genotypes maintained at different research stations. Thus, the available diversity among the present set of wild apples could be explored for the scion as well as for rootstock breeding.

Screening for Resistance Sources in Local and Exotic Hot Pepper Genotypes to Fusarium Wilt (Fusarium oxysporium) and Associated Quality Traits in Ethiopia

Fifty-four hot pepper germplasm (49 local accessions and 5 AVRDC genotypes) were evaluated for resistance to fusarium wilt in a greenhouse at Melkassa Agricultural Research Centre in Ethiopia. A completely randomized design with three replications was used. Each local accession was also analyzed for associated quality traits of capsaicin and oleoresin content. The overall results indicated that disease incidence ranged from 8 (PBC-731) to 100% for Acc-15. Most local collections exhibited higher disease incidences percent than AVRDC genotypes with an overall mean DI <25% of Fusarium wilt. Among the 49 local accessions, however, only two accessions were found resistant (1-10%) while three were moderately resistant (11-20%). Assessment of the same accessions for resistance to the disease using severity index (SI) showed that 11 accessions and genotypes were found resistant (<10% DSI) whereas nine genotypes moderately resistant (10-20% SI), 10 genotypes were moderately susceptible (21-40% SI), four accessions were found susceptible (41-60%) and the rest 20 accessions were highly susceptible >60%. Based on severity rating (1-5 scale), two accessions (Acc-39 and PBC-731) were highly resistant to wilt with severity ratings of 1 and 14 accessions were found resistant with severity rating scale of 2 whereas 38 accessions were susceptible with severity scale of >3. Capsaicin content percentage ranged from 0.16-0.55%, and heat unit ranged 26372 to 88775 SHU, for Acc-32 and Acc-24, respectively. Oleoresin content in international color unit and ASTA value ranged from 32,800 to 118,840 cu and 82-296 ASTA with an overall mean of 69,704 ICU and 172 ASTA value. The highest color quality colors of greater than 250 ASTA was exhibited by 10 accessions (Acc-4, Acc-5, Acc-6, Acc-7, Acc-24, Acc-27, Acc-33, Acc-34, Acc-39 and Acc-31). This study identified resistance accessions with desirable qualities among the 49 local accessions. These materials also had good wilt resistance potential and could be used as source parents in the future hybridization and for simultaneous selection for Fusarium wilt resistance and high processing quality traits in hot pepper improvement program.

Population dynamics and performance of exotic versus indigenous chicken population in the selected districts of North Western Amhara, Ethiopia

Sisay T, Alemayehu K, Wuletaw Z. 2017. Population dynamics and performance of exotic versus indigenous chicken population in the selected districts of North Western Amhara, Ethiopia. Trop Drylands 1: 90-99. Chicken in Ethiopia contributes, respectively, 98.5% and 99.2% of the national egg and chicken meat production. The total chicken population is estimated to be 56.87 million of which 95.86, 2.79 and 1.35% are indigenous, crossbred and exotic breeds, respectively. The objective of this paper was to quantify the population dynamics and performance of exotic versus indigenous chicken population in the selected districts of northwestern Amhara, Ethiopia. Banja and Burie districts and six Kebeles (three/district) were purposively selected. A total 180 respondents were selected by systematic and simple random sampling techniques for the survey. On the other hand, a total of 90 exotic chicken owners were purposively selected for monitoring and evaluation. GLM procedure of SAS (2002) was used to quantify the fixed effects of agroecology and breeds on the egg production performance. The results revealed that the majorities (91.12%) of distributed exotic chickens were kept in traditional/backyard production system. The overall mean egg production for exotic chickens (141.58±11.5) was too low. Significantly, the mean number of clutch per year per hen of Bovans Brown chicken was higher (4.51±0.11 days) than Bovans white breeds (3.5±0.10 days). Shortage at first egg was attained from midland of Koekoek chicken breed (5.38±0.24 months) than from highland (6.54±0.10 months) in Bovans Brown chicken. A highly significant difference in mortality was observed between Bovans Brown (89%) and Koekoek breed (32.4%), respectively due to traditional farmers' management practice. Distribution of different exotic chicken genotypes in the region is increasing from time to time for the upgrading of local chicken ecotypes but, the survival, productivity and population size of exotic and their crosses were too low. On the other hand, the population size of the indigenous chicken and its productivity remains almost constant. Causes of chick mortality in the study area were disease and predator which need to be considered in the development plan of the districts. This is due to the inappropriate production system, genotype, and management. Therefore, production and productivity will be increased through the selection of indigenous chicken ecotypes and crossbreed or upgrading by introduction exotic cocks, pullets and or fertile eggs of high egg producing strains with an appropriate production system and management in respective production system.

Genetic diversity and character association analysis based on pomological traits in olive (Olea europaea L.)

Thirteen exotic genotypes of olive (Olea europaea L.) were studied for the genetic variability, correlation and path coefficient analysis for fruit quality, yield and yield contributing traits at experimental farm of ICAR-CITH, Srinagar during 2009-2013. Maximum variability was recorded for fruit yield and oil content, however, low differ-ences between the phenotypic and genotypic coefficients of variations indicated low environmental influences on the expression of these characters. High heritability coupled with high genetic advance was obtained with fruit yield per plant, acidity, fruit pulp weight, fruit weight and stone weight. Fruit weight (r=0.329), stone weight (r=0.405) and oil content (r=0.841) were the most important traits, which possessed significant positive association with fruit yield per plant. Path coefficient analysis revealed that among the different yield contributing characters oil content (0.875), fruit weight (0.797) followed by acidity (0.501), peroxides value ( 0.199) and fruit length (0.054) influenced fruit yield per plant directly. The direct effects of these characters on fruit yield were found positive and considerably very high.The selection based on fruit weight, stone weight oil content and yield per plant will be effective for enhancing the fruit and oil yieldand making future olive breeding strategies.