Inter tree variability for fruit quality in jackfruit selections of Western Ghats of India

Ninety-five jackfruit types selected from Western Ghats of India, which is the centre of origin for the species, were analyzed using Mahalanobis D² technique to determine the degree of divergence present among the selections. The studies revealed that majority of selections (91), irrespective of their ecogeographic area, were grouped in one cluster and the remaining 4 types were solitary with one selection in each cluster. Inter cluster distance was maximum between clusters D and E (525.8) and minimum inter cluster divergence was observed between clusters B and C (106.1). Cluster means for all economically important characters were not found to be highest in any one cluster indicating the vast diversity on account of indigenous and cross-pollinated nature of the crop. The maximum relative contribution to the total divergence was by number of seeds per fruit and TSS:Acid ratio indicating the ample amount of variability in these traits and hence the selection process for crop improvement in jackfruit should deem these characters.