Genetic Divergence Studies in Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L) Under Protected Conditions in Mid Hills of Himachal Pradesh

Twenty-eight genotypes of lettuce including check cultivars (Simpson Black Seeded and Great Lakes) were evaluated for genetic divergence studies under protected conditions. The present investigation entitled “Genetic evaluation of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) germplasm under protected conditions” was carried out at experimental farm of Department of Vegetable Science, Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan (HP) during 2011-12 and 2012-13. The experiment was laid out in a RCBD with three replications. Analysis of variance showed highly significant differences among genotypes for all the characters under study. By multivariate analysis (Mahalanobis D2 technique), the genetic divergence among the genotypes were quantitatively measured. The genotypes were grouped into five clusters by this technique and more number of genotypes were grouped into cluster V. There was no relationship between clustering pattern and ecogeographical distribution. The effect of genetic divergence on the choice of genetic divergence on the choice of clusters accommodating the parental stock for further breeding programmes is also discussed.