Selection of Artemisia annua genotypes based on agronomic traits

Abstract The objective of this work was to select Artemisia annua genotypes based on the agronomic characteristics of half-sib families. The experiment consisted of 24 treatments, of which 23 with half-sib families of A. annua germplasm and one control with Artemis cultivar, in a randomized block design. Data analysis used the restricted maximum likelihood/best linear unbiased predictor methodology and the correlation among agronomic traits. The half-sibs of A. annua present high phenotypic variability in agronomic traits. The classification of the ten half-sibs with the greatest results based on the estimated mean of the best linear unbiased predictor for dry mass of the leaves as follows: 1005_2-1; 2713_3-2; 2612_4-1; 1315_2-2; 1107_3-1; 213_4-3; 2612_3-1; 213_1-1; 2612_4-2; and 2417_4-2. The variation of genotypes within half-sib families in leaf dry mass, diameter of the middle portion of the canopy, and the total number of branches enables the selection of specific plant architectures. The agronomic traits branch and leaf dry mass, diameter of the middle portion of the canopy, and total branches show higher heritability in A. annua and are suitable for field selection.