Plant position effect on seed weight,oil content,and oil composition in sesame

Summary Within-plant variation was studied in seed samples of sesame (Sesamum indicum L.). Central and lateral capsules were sampled in three entries. Three capsule postions-basal (nodes 16 to 20), intermediate (nodes 21 to 25), and apical (nodes 26 to 30)-were sampled in four other entries. Nuclear magnetic resonance and gas liquid chromatography were used to characterize within-and among-plants variation in the same genotype for oil content and its fatty acid composition, respectively.Central capsules had heavier seeds, and their oil had more palmitic and oleic acids than had seeds from the two lateral capsules. However, central capsules had seeds with less oil content, and the oil had less stearic, linoleic, and arachidic acids than seeds from lateral capsules. Seed weight and arachidic acid were found to be constant in seeds from capsules located at different nodes along the plant. Oil content had a significant variation with capsule position along the plant in only one entry. Percentages of palmitic and linoleic acids were lower, and those of stearic, oleic, and linolenic acids were higher in seeds from the apical capsules. In almost all cases, capsules located in the intermediate and basal sections had a similar oil composition. However, there was a lack of consistency in the within-plant variation from plant to plant for the different traits studied. It was concluded that within-plant variation need be taken into account only if the experiment was set up to detect small differences between treatments. Among-plants variation was found to be influenced by plant genotype.