Phenotypic variation within a fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) germplasm collection. I. Description of the collection

Abstract

Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) is a minor crop in Australia with potential for seed, forage and green manuring, with most production based on an unnamed cultivar (A150000). A germplasm collection of 205 fenugreek accessions was evaluated in the field in south-eastern Australia for a range of phenotypic traits. There was significant variation exhibited for all traits including growth habit, flowering time, seed colour, seed size, biomass and seed yield. Over 100 accessions had significantly higher yield and/or biomass than the currently grown A150000. The diversity exhibited provides a promising basis for a genetic improvement program in Australia and in similar environments in other countries. The accessions identified as from the subspecies indica Sinsk. had small, yellow seed and originated mainly from Pakistan and India and half of these types had significantly higher yields than the check-line. Accessions that fitted the description of the more diverse subsp. foenum-graecum were from Iran, Afghanistan, Turkey and several northern African countries, and there were high yielding green-seeded types in this group. Accessions from Turkey and Iran showed the most phenotypic diversity. High yielding accessions were found in germplasm from most countries and all latitude zones, although latitudes >30° provided 73% of the high yielding accessions. Countries of origin warranting further investigation at the mid-30s latitudes are Morocco, Iran, Turkey, Algeria and Jordan. It was concluded that traits associated with high yielding lines with yellow or green seed can be found in different centres of origins.