Title : Morphological characterization of 47 accessions of calla lily (Zantedeschia aethiopica (L.) Spreng)
Abstract:
The morphological characterization of species has been used to know genetic diversity among accessions and represent significant information for the conservation of plant genetic resources as well as to support genetic improvement programs. The objective of this work was to characterize in situ 47 calla lily accessions grown in the provinces of Veracruz and Mexico, using the UPOV 2001 descriptive guide, through 19 quantitative and 20 qualitative characters on a nominal scale. By means of Principal Component Analysis (PCA), it was determined that the first five components of quantitative traits explained 79.46% of the observed variation while for qualitative traits the first five components explained 78.52% of the observed variation. The eigenvalues indicated that characters related to blade length and width, spathe height and length, petiole length and plant height contributed largely to the total diversity of the characterized germplasm. While qualitative characters related to spathe color, spadix and stems were the major contributors. Morphological markers detected genetic diversity among UBCs and were able to differentiate accessions by a clustering analysis represented in a dendrogram. The accessions were grouped into five and seven clusters or population patterns, according to quantitative and qualitative traits, differentiated mainly by the climatic conditions in which they thrive. The accessions of Z. aethiopica (L.) Spreng, originating from central-eastern Veracruz and Edo. de México analyzed in this study showed high morphological variability, which shows the germplasm potential and a beginning to establish strategies for a genetic improvement program.
