Screening for Drought Tolerant Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) Lines Suitable for Rainfed Alfisol

摘要

The occurrence of intermittent dryness in rain-dependent cultivation and soil surface crusting in alfisol are the major hindrances in enhancing groundnut productivity. Twenty nine peanut lines were field screened for drought tolerance at Dryland Agricultural Research Station, Chettinad. The Drought Susceptibility Index (DSI), Drought Tolerance Efficiency (DTE), Stress Tolerance Index (STI) for pod yield per plant and percent change of performance in yield attributes under moisture stress were considered as measures of drought tolerance. The intermittent dry spells delayed the flowering and maturity in groundnut. The soil moisture stress resulted in reduction of plant height, number of matured pods per plant and pod yield per plant. Genotypes recorded high pod yield per plant were ICGV 07240, ICGV 07241, ICGV 07245, ICGV 07247 and VRI (Gn) 7. But these genotypes were sensitive to drought as indicated by high DSI and less DTE. Drought tolerant peanut lines ICGV 07219, ICGV 07262 and ICGV 07268 have shown consistence in the pod yield performance with less DSI and high DTE. The identified genotypes can be evaluated in varied rain-fed environments to exploit their drought tolerance and yield potentials. The validated lines can be utilized as peanut cultivars for rain-fed or drought prone environments under changing climate.