Phenotypic characterization and genetic diversity studies of finger millet (Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertn) germplasms

Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertn, also known as ragi, is one of the most important millet crops, cultivated across many parts of India. It is well known for its climate resilience and drought tolerance capacity. In the recent years, finger millet is gaining popularity due to its nutritional status and as a measure of crop diversification for small and marginalized farmers. This study was undertaken with the objective to identify various traits that could potentially help in yield enhancement directly or indirectly. During the Kharif, 2022 the experiment was undertaken in a randomized block design (RBD) with three replications. Eight significantly important traits like days to 50 % flowering, days to maturity, plant height, ear length, number of fingers per ear, number of ears per plant, test weight and yield per plant were recorded. Higher mean performance across the majority of traits under study was exhibited by genotypes like Mut-4, G30-GN-2-2, VR-849 and VR-822. Correlation analysis showed a strong and positive association between the number of ears per plant and grain yield, indicating that selecting plants withmore ears could potentially increase yield. Path coefficient study showed that the number of ears per plant had the highest direct positive effect on grain yield, followed by the number of days till 50 % flowering. The Mahalanobis D2 analysis, grouped the genotypes into five groups; the maximum genetic divergence was found in clusters IV and V (D2 = 219.92). This suggests a potential opportunity to select parents with diverse genetic backgrounds for future hybridisation attempts. This study provides valuable findings to improve yield potential of finger millet and enhance crop improvement programmes selection of suitable parents.