Reproductive efficiency of two Luffa species - Factors affecting low reproductive rate in meiotically stable Luffa acutangula (L.) Roxb.

Abstract

Two species of genus Luffa, namely L. cylindrica and L. acutangula have been analyzed during the present study for the details of morphological and meiotic variability. While the former is found only in cultivation, the latter is cultivated on a small scale and also grows in wild in Jammu district of J&K state (India). These species match in their gross morphology and in having a diploid chromosome number of 2n=26. Of the two, L. acutangula is more efficient in its meiotic system displaying minimum abnormalities and showing higher pollen viability (70.64 %) as compared to L. cylindrica which has slightly abnormal meiosis resulting in lower pollen viability (30.34 %). Inspite of this low pollen viability, L .cylindrica is reproductively much efficient than L. acutangula in terms of % age fruit and seed set and fruit size. Latter lags behind because of some disadvantages in reproductive features including size of flower, time of anthesis, availability of pollinators and rewards offered. All these factors lead to limited pollen transfer resulting in dip in reproductive efficiency.

Floral Structural Characteristics of some Economic Cucurbits in Egypt

“…Length of the petiole flower ranged from one cm in Cucumis sativus to 27.5 cm in Lagenaria siceraria. These results are in harmony with Jamwal and Sharma (2015) who reported that Luffa cylindrical male and female flowers on the same plant with the lower nodes bearing only staminate flowers, followed by nodes having both staminate and pistillate flowers. Male flowers appeared first on the vine under staminate nodes, it was borne on a pedunculate raceme.…”

Construction of a High-density Genetic Linkage Map and QTL Analysis of Resistance to Cucumber Mosaic Virus in Luffa cylindrica (L.) Roem. Based on Specific Length Amplified Fragment Sequencing

“…are domesticated [2,3]. Furthermore, L. cylindrica has always been a preferred crop for cultivation because of its higher fruit set and bigger fruit size [4]. This species is grown principally for production of sponges, which can be used as bath sponges, or as an alternative biomaterial used for packaging, furniture, and plastic appliances, and also as an adsorbent of heavy metal contaminants from industrial waters, which makes it a cash crop [4][5][6].…”