Assessment of Genetic Variability andDivergence in Coriander (Coriandrumsativum L.) Germplasm Using MultivariateStatistical Approaches

he present investigation aimed to assess the genetic variation anddivergence among coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.) genotypesusing various multivariate statistical methods. The study wasconducted in Randomized Block Design, evaluating ten keyquantitative characters to identify promising genotypes. Correlationanalysis revealed significant positive associations, notably betweenumbels per plant and seeds per umbel, as well as between biologicalyield and seed yield, suggesting their potential for indirect selection inbreeding programs. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) identifiedfour principal components that collectively accounted for 87.26% ofthe total variability, with PC1 contributing the highest proportion. Thiscomponent was primarily influenced by plant height, number ofbranches per plant and oil content. Cluster analysis categorized thegenotypes into four groups. Genotypes UD 619, UD 703 and RCr 728showed close genetic affinity, while UD 603 stood out as a distinctgenotype due to its notably high seed yield. Plant height and oilcontent exhibited high heritability coupled with a high geneticadvance as percent of mean, indicating the predominance of additivegene action.