Genetic Diversity Analysis of Coffee (<i>Coffee arabica</i> L.) Germplasm Accessions Growing in the Southwestern Saudi Arabia Using Quantitative Traits

Abstract

Coffee (Coffea arabica) is an economically important crop cultivated on the terraced slopes and narrow valleys of the mountains in the south-western Saudi Arabia. The objective of the study was to evaluate genetic diversity among nineteen coffee accessions collected from different coffee growing areas based on quantitative morphological and pomological traits. Data of 17 quantitative traits were collected and subjected to various statistical analyses. The analysis of variance showed significant differences (P < 0.05) among the accessions for the majority of quantitative traits measured. A principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) were used to determine the nature and degree of divergence among accessions. PCA showed that four principal components explained about 85.62% of the total variation. Differentiation of germplasm into different clusters was because of cumulative effects of a number of characters. Cluster and distance analysis of quantitative traits revealed the existence of five different groups. The maximum distance was seen between clusters IV and V (76.4) while the minimum was seen between I and II (16.13). Accessions like KSA6 and KSA8 from Tallen valley and KSA10 and KSA11 from Hada and Shada valleys collection are recommenced for the next breeding work as they are high yielder accessions compared to the others. However, it is suggested to complete the present results by additional assessment of the in situ collection and variety trials. These results are of great interest for future breeding programs for this species.

Assessment of Genetic Diversity of Coffee Accessions in Rwanda and Its Implication for Coffee Breeding

“…This study sought to determine the genetic diversity in coffee accessions in Rwanda using morphological characterization as a basis for germplasm development and management in Rwanda. The existence of genetic variation in coffee accessions in Rwanda was confirmed, which implies that despites their downsides, morphological markers are still useful for characterizing coffee germplasm as previously stated by [3] [7] [10] and [12]. The data (Table 3) showed existence of significant morphological variation and, hence, remarkable genetic diversity among the 21 accessions.…”

“…The efficient exploitation of germplasm lies in comprehending its genetic difference and elaborating proper relating phenotypical classes [12] [18] [19]. This study sought to determine the genetic diversity in coffee accessions in Rwanda using morphological characterization as a basis for germplasm development and management in Rwanda.…”

“…[3] also reported of 49 coffee accessions in Ethiopia that significantly differed for the most of the traits studied. Also, [12] was able to detect significant genetic variations for the quantitative traits examined across germplasm cultivated in the Southwestern region of Saudi Arabia. Conversely, [11] studied the level of morphological variation between and within new and the existing coffee varieties in Kenya but observed fairly slim genetic variation among these varieties.…”

Genetic Diversity ofCoffea arabica

“…All cluster showed significant inter-cluster distance, where two clusters present highest cluster distance. Therefore, Tounekti et al [63] affirms that from these findings, it is suitable to explore this variability in breeding programmes to overcome environmental stresses.…”

Coffee production in southern Saudi Arabian highlands: Current status and water conservation

“…This species is socioeconomically important and source of income for mountain farmers in southwestern Saudi Arabia. Increased interest in coffee production led to accelerated research into coffee agriculture in the region (Al-Abdulkader et al, 2017, Mahdhi et al, 2017, Tounekti et al, 2017, Tounekti et al, 2018). In this region Fifa Mountain reaches altitude of 1800 m and coffee plantations rely on moderate temperature, high humidity, and rainfall.…”