Morphological evaluation b principle component analysis of oleaster accessions (Olea europaea L., var. Sylvestris) in Al-Jabal Al-Akhdar, Libya

Wild olive or oleaster (Oleaeuropaea L. var. Sylvestris) is considered one of the common plant species contributing to the biodiversity of Al-Jabal Al-Akhdar, Libya. The objective of the present study is to evaluate phenotypic variability and hence the genetic variation of wild olive (oleaster) in Al-Jabal Al-Akhdar. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used tocompare the fruit and seed characteristics of 12 wild populations growing and naturally spreading in the study area.Theresults reported that the first three PCs recorded eigen values more than 1 and explained the 94.61% of variation. PC1 had 48.09%, PC2 explained 28.66% and PC3 had17.86% of the total variation. Based on morphological traits analysis, it can be concluded that oleaster exhibits a higher genetic diversity. The dendrogram derived from the morphological data serves as a valuable tool for elucidating the phylogenetic relationships among oleaster populations in Al-Jabal Al-Akhdar. Keywords: Morphological analysis, Oleaster, Principal component analysis, Cluster analysis, Al-Jabal Al-Akhdar