2. Agronomic performance and nutritional quality of okra

For field evaluation, 50 genotypes of okra (Table 1) were obtained from the AVRDC (World Vegetable Center), Taiwan. In this study, the field experiment was conducted in the Gauteng province of South Africa under rain-fed conditions during the 2015 and 2016 summer growing seasons at Roodeplaat (25�59<sup>0</sup> S; 28�35<sup>0</sup> E) research farm of the Agricultural Research Council. It is situated at an altitude of 1168 m above sea level. Roodeplaat has annual maximum average temperature ranged from 15.38 to 30.36�C and receives an average annual rainfall of 584.21 mm during the cropping seasons. The experimental site has loam clay type of soil. Two seeds of each okra genotype was planted in three rows of 4 m length spaced at 0.85 m between rows and 0.4 m between the plants. The seedlings were thinned into one when fully establishment in the field. A randomized complete block design with three replications was applied. Trial management such as plot preparation, and hand weeding were done when required and supplementary irrigation was employed when rainfall is not enough for the growth and development of the crop under research.

#### 2.1. Agronomic characterization

African indigenous fruit vegetable crops belonging to the family Malvaceae. It originated in Ethiopia [6], the former Abyssinia, and was cultivated by the ancient Egyptians. Its cultivation spread throughout Middle East and North Africa [7, 8]. In Ethiopia it is also called Kenkase (Berta), Andeha (Gumuz), and Bamia (Oromica/Amharic) [9]. Authors of Refs. [4, 9–11] reported that okra is a multipurpose crop due to its various uses of the pods, fresh leaves, buds, flowers, stems, and seeds. The immature fruits can be consumed as vegetables, in the form of salads, soups and stews, fresh or dried, fried or boiled. The plant contains mucilage in various plant parts, which is associated with other important substances including tannins [12]. The biological functions of mucilage within the plant includes aiding in water storage, decrease diffusion in plants, aid in seed dispersal and germination, and act as a membrane thickener and food reserve. Okra contains proteins, carbohydrates, and vitamins [8] that plays a substantial role in food security, human health [5], and nutritional security. Consumption of young and green immature okra fruits is very important as fresh fruits, and it can be consumed in different forms [13] such as boiled, fried, or cooked. Okra seeds contain about 20% protein and 20% oil [7]. It was reported that the seeds can be dried and the dried seeds are a nutritious material that can be used to prepare vegetable curds or roasted and ground to be used as coffee additive or substitute [14]. Moreover, okra leaves can also be used as animal feed. In similar fashion, the green leaf buds and flowers are also edible [15]. Okra mucilage is used for industrial and medicinal applications [16] in different parts of the country in the world. Industrial use of mucilage is usually for glace paper production and has a confectionery use. Okra has found medical application as a plasma replacement or blood volume expander [17, 18]. A study conducted in China suggested that an alcohol extract of okra leaves can eliminate oxygen free radicals, alleviate renal tubular-interstitial diseases, reduce proteinuria, and improve

Okra is a traditional crop, which requires relatively low agronomic input, but can contribute substantially to sustainable agricultural production and productivity in South Africa and beyond. This species is under-exploited and have potential for contributing toward food, nutritional, and health security for current alarmingly growing population, contributes a vital role in income generation and poverty alleviation. It is a valuable source of nutrients [20] with important medicinal properties [21]. Its wide range of biodiversity contributes to food, nutritional security, health benefit, and income diversification in the subsistence farming system that predominates in the different parts of the world. Therefore, improving the genetic potential of indigenous fruit vegetables like okra species is of paramount importance for yield, and nutritional quality. Evaluation and characterization of germplasm is important and the first step to the breeders who desire sources of genes for novel traits. It was reported that characterization of genetic resources refers to the process by which accessions are identified, differentiated, or distinguished according to their morphological and/or nutritional quality traits [22]. Currently, there is no clear record on genetic characterization and evaluation of the genetic resources of this crop under South African condition. Okra production and productivity is negatively due to the use of low yielding local landraces and use of poor agronomic management practices. Furthermore, production technology, development of new cultivar, and okra management practices are very limited in South Africa. To date, there are no reports of any improved cultivars developed in South Africa for high yield, nutritional contents as well as disease and pest tolerance. In addition,

renal function [19].

72 Rediscovery of Landraces as a Resource for the Future

Morphological phenotypic traits were evaluated and recorded using the International Plant Genetic Resources [23] okra descriptor list. The agro-morphological traits record includes plant height (PH), number of fruits per plant (NFP), number of branches per plant (NB), number of leaves per plant (NL), number of internodes (NI), internode length (IL), stem diameter (SD), leaf length (LL), leaf width (LW), days to 50% flowering (D50%F), fruit length (FL), fruit diameter (FD), fresh fruit yield (FYLD), number of seeds per fruit (NSF), 1000 seed weight (TSwt), shell weight (Swt), fruit harvest index (FHI) and grain yield per plant (GY) (Table 1).

#### 2.2. Nutritional characterization

The fresh and immature fruits of the okra genotypes were harvested and analyzed for total protein content and selected mineral elements (calcium, copper, iron, potassium, magnesium, manganese, sodium, phosphorus, aluminum, boron and zinc) at the analytical laboratory of the Agricultural Research Council in Pretoria, South Africa. Fruits of okra were collected from each replicate in the field for analysis of mineral elements and protein content. Laboratory analysis were performed in triplicate and the results were expressed as mean for analysis (Table 2).

Protein analysis: A dry oxidation method was used to determine the total nitrogen and the crude protein contents (N � 6.25) of the samples [24, 25].


Genotypes

 Morphological

PH

VI039652

VI050957

VI060678

VI055220

VI039618

VI060313

VI046561

VI055119

VI060823

VI056449

VI060822

VI041215

VI055421

VI056450

VI039651

VI055423

VI039638

VI056079

VI041210

VI050960

VI055884

VI056081

VI050956

VI050959

VI060790

 45.81

 4.00

 4.50

 36.50

 4.22

 23.93

 12.13

 17.23

 8.38

 66.17

 9.03

 16.77 120.07

 19.07

 31.80

 27.37

 61.17

 24.32 75

 57.20

 2.61

 7.39

 42.56

 5.94

 27.33

 20.85

 16.09

 7.12

 69.33

 10.04

 10.40 68.61

 19.51

 31.82

 19.24

 24.39

 28.08

 57.26

 2.06

 8.33

 60.67

 5.50

 52.15

 17.74

 15.57

 7.57

 46.83

 12.51

 11.42 40.49

 19.58

 34.71

 17.75

 31.69

 43.86

 70.67

 4.22

 4.94

 47.83

 4.78

 34.08

 18.16

 14.82

 7.52

 68.33

 11.29

 12.77 51.65

 28.32

 39.63

 26.57

 41.49

 48.64

 47.15

 1.56

 5.67

 39.61

 12.50 38.48

 13.95

 15.43

 7.94

 74.33

 13.41

 11.91 77.61

 30.93

 47.10

 30.57

 33.83

 38.32

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.70813

 88.79

 4.06

 5.94

 38.17

 7.17

 41.82

 17.43

 15.24

 7.00

 68.17

 8.98

 21.13 64.07

 19.85

 62.72

 26.36

 32.41

 40.33

 58.63

 4.33

 7.89

 53.56

 6.67

 47.36

 12.68

 15.96

 7.75

 56.33

 13.68

 15.89 69.70

 28.86

 40.81

 32.26

 39.69

 44.81

 88.43

 11.72

 4.72

 29.83

 4.56

 49.11

 11.60

 17.45

 6.60

 55.83

 16.08

 15.67 82.29

 34.27

 50.81

 36.69

 61.46

 53.27

 112.89

 14.58

 5.39

 21.67

 8.11

 93.21

 13.68

 12.43

 6.16

 47.50

 13.95

 16.36 95.93

 35.92

 47.75

 38.72

 58.86

 40.98

Agronomic Performance, Nutritional Phenotyping and Trait Associations of Okra…

 89.17

 12.11

 3.83

 33.89

 5.61

 51.65

 17.64

 18.18

 5.59

 54.17

 15.25

 17.06 81.64

 36.94

 51.92

 36.03

 61.89

 49.48

 86.17

 23.17

 4.39

 27.94

 7.33

 35.07

 11.52

 9.77

 5.74

 51.83

 19.26

 22.39 111.85

 41.58

 56.35

 33.26

 72.58

 39.02

 75.69

 15.28

 6.72

 38.11

 6.17

 58.47

 12.54

 14.21

 6.63

 52.50

 12.61

 18.06 75.82

 37.19

 52.74

 42.96

 59.90

 69.45

 90.93

 8.28

 5.89

 26.28

 7.28

 73.64

 21.88

 16.80

 8.28

 53.33

 13.36

 14.39 50.36

 25.33

 34.79

 32.08

 24.64

 71.22

 73.36

 8.44

 5.50

 40.78

 6.50

 71.14

 17.97

 13.43

 5.69

 49.17

 15.67

 15.13 95.29

 46.08

 59.68

 39.35

 68.90

 43.36

 77.78

 3.92

 6.78

 40.57

 6.72

 46.53

 19.22

 15.82

 9.01

 69.67

 8.06

 21.14 65.91

 33.76

 64.72

 30.17

 38.44

 46.08

 76.63

 11.61

 5.50

 34.28

 6.83

 70.99

 18.67

 16.67

 6.49

 56.33

 17.90

 16.24 88.55

 41.01

 56.38

 35.76

 64.74

 43.17

 107.59

 2.78

 9.00

 46.56

 7.72

 72.87

 23.58

 16.86

 5.84

 66.83

 11.73

 14.26 52.41

 25.88

 50.62

 28.66

 31.57

 55.64

 111.20

 16.17

 6.67

 56.22

 11.06 51.42

 21.48

 15.19

 7.52

 49.17

 12.99

 13.32 68.00

 37.33

 44.40

 38.50

 54.51

 74.69

 72.54

 7.61

 5.47

 39.78

 7.59

 42.81

 14.74

 15.93

 8.30

 56.33

 15.10

 22.08 130.58

 41.00

 55.82

 45.12

 97.95

 34.71

 122.90

 2.39

 10.44 55.56

 10.78 70.84

 19.18

 16.94

 8.22

 68.33

 12.47

 15.01 78.23

 32.86

 48.72

 31.36

 40.17

 39.22

 113.47

 27.17

 5.11

 31.78

 10.50 50.51

 10.98

 14.36

 4.96

 49.33

 22.91

 24.54 132.82

 62.65

 58.63

 32.08

 96.62

 24.19

 94.83

 12.39

 5.33

 38.72

 6.78

 84.58

 20.00

 15.61

 7.13

 55.83

 16.08

 18.14 122.06

 42.04

 58.80

 37.60

 63.17

 30.86

 75.84

 19.72

 4.17

 37.83

 7.17

 50.05

 14.94

 12.85

 5.43

 48.00

 24.12

 24.45 123.21

 56.86

 67.06

 45.90

 78.92

 41.90

 78.80

 3.44

 8.33

 47.83

 12.22 52.10

 25.89

 15.92

 8.89

 67.17

 12.48

 18.62 88.92

 31.67

 57.40

 34.98

 53.64

 36.05

 111.73

 27.11

 4.61

 26.56

 5.78

 47.60

 16.59

 14.69

 6.60

 48.00

 21.78

 25.47 108.13

 52.64

 55.22

 48.50

 71.67

 64.70

 NFP

 NB

 NL

 NI

 IL

 SD

 LL

 LW

 D50%F FL

 FD

 FYLD

 GY

 NSF

 TSwt

 Swt

 FHI

 phenotypic traits


Genotypes

 Morphological

PH

VI033778

VI041763

VI037993

VI060803

VI046567

VI055219

VI060802

VI055996

VI037996

VI060824

VI047672

VI033803

VI033796

VI033777

VI060679

VI033775

VI050958

VI055110

VI049632

VI056069

VI056457

VI033797

VI060131

VI060817

VI050150

 90.61

 15.61

 6.00

 39.61

 12.28 51.19

 15.52

 16.13

 8.75

 53.00

 14.17

 17.58 84.10

 41.80

 53.42

 34.73

 80.40

 49.31

 87.28

 10.39

 6.00

 40.67

 7.89

 62.44

 14.06

 14.47

 8.01

 56.67

 14.32

 22.86 93.18

 41.72

 64.90

 37.42

 69.70

 43.06

 75.59

 11.22

 6.94

 57.42

 6.00

 72.39

 24.05

 15.58

 9.81

 55.26

 14.91

 17.66 78.69

 37.19

 51.57

 37.66

 64.43

 55.98

 90.07

 9.11

 8.89

 37.22

 10.39 40.91

 20.56

 15.70

 7.11

 48.33

 17.81

 20.26 97.37

 41.32

 55.04

 42.31

 75.54

 48.15

 75.88

 27.61

 6.28

 37.39

 8.61

 86.20

 14.22

 12.34

 5.28

 49.67

 17.86

 23.79 105.96

 59.66

 55.23

 38.51

 65.03

 60.03

 110.68

 11.17

 4.33

 34.89

 6.11

 60.84

 18.91

 18.79

 8.12

 67.17

 15.25

 18.65 84.43

 37.89

 59.65

 39.10

 66.27

 49.73

 69.02

 15.83

 5.67

 51.61

 9.61

 55.56

 24.95

 15.70

 7.72

 56.33

 14.10

 18.98 79.15

 42.44

 56.95

 37.28

 65.70

 48.16

 93.30

 14.06

 5.56

 41.72

 7.22

 51.05

 19.85

 16.48

 7.20

 51.67

 15.46

 18.59 94.61

 36.02

 61.72

 43.98

 71.36

 49.33

 121.87

 12.06

 6.44

 40.11

 8.50

 72.05

 21.94

 14.99

 8.26

 49.17

 15.89

 15.27 90.92

 42.46

 59.20

 40.69

 66.82

 43.52

 126.96

 14.78

 6.83

 33.56

 12.00 70.37

 14.02

 16.77

 8.94

 48.33

 18.98

 17.49 95.42

 48.07

 56.27

 37.67

 68.69

 40.96

 96.77

 20.61

 4.17

 24.44

 8.11

 67.51

 13.36

 14.33

 7.08

 53.33

 22.25

 22.70 115.59

 62.75

 60.35

 42.23

 91.18

 67.39

 87.73

 13.39

 8.61

 48.50

 5.67

 60.91

 17.57

 15.93

 7.51

 55.67

 32.32

 18.44 91.20

 42.07

 56.58

 43.37

 68.09

 53.73

 91.75

 12.72

 5.50

 34.44

 8.17

 87.80

 19.77

 20.83

 9.36

 53.67

 23.44

 17.57 110.27

 37.13

 64.32

 35.19

 80.03

 31.20

 78.71

 4.83

 7.44

 39.78

 10.11 48.94

 22.80

 17.74

 8.80

 53.83

 18.21

 17.73 94.29

 45.00

 60.45

 38.58

 75.28

 45.35

 121.06

 25.78

 5.17

 38.17

 6.83

 57.54

 20.49

 13.61

 7.09

 53.00

 21.19

 22.89 105.86

 65.04

 65.58

 43.16

 91.81

 38.39

 102.64

 13.56

 7.83

 59.61

 8.56

 73.47

 22.66

 15.07

 8.08

 52.50

 14.30

 20.46 198.34

 33.36

 61.82

 39.86

 103.69

 23.78

 77.49

 13.11

 8.94

 46.67

 6.61

 61.20

 16.10

 16.58

 8.75

 74.50

 14.58

 23.74 253.58

 39.02

 69.44

 42.21

 156.03

 23.04

 107.96

 10.33

 7.93

 21.00

 8.52

 55.72

 21.67

 18.44

 7.55

 55.00

 25.03

 24.27 113.44

 44.06

 68.00

 38.46

 75.97

 34.23

 89.68

 26.28

 7.56

 49.28

 7.11

 38.22

 20.76

 13.28

 5.69

 54.17

 22.18

 23.95 126.96

 65.90

 74.02

 43.02

 101.19

 41.35

 114.29

 14.33

 9.61

 53.72

 8.06

 60.14

 17.31

 17.78

 8.56

 53.00

 17.40

 18.93 87.67

 42.27

 61.80

 42.23

 66.07

 50.54

 79.01

 26.17

 7.72

 41.50

 6.78

 47.02

 17.83

 17.73

 7.26

 56.33

 23.64

 24.07 262.88

 63.58

 63.87

 42.76

 116.50

 20.59

 150.31

 13.50

 9.28

 47.39

 17.72 83.84

 28.18

 17.33

 7.09

 69.00

 15.10

 17.56 85.71

 45.90

 57.92

 43.00

 61.79

 54.47

 81.52

 31.00

 8.78

 55.56

 8.00

 61.08

 16.06

 16.32

 8.98

 56.33

 21.85

 25.17 130.76

 53.20

 67.78

 38.63

 81.95

 33.16

74 Rediscovery of Landraces as a Resource for the Future

 124.82

 22.06

 7.11

 43.72

 11.61 86.44

 16.38

 18.21

 7.96

 48.33

 23.66

 21.22 127.30

 53.65

 61.30

 43.05

 79.42

 39.13

 84.50

 22.33

 6.89

 37.83

 8.50

 69.18

 17.60

 17.06

 7.89

 56.33

 27.91

 25.47 136.80

 61.21

 65.07

 47.36

 110.73

 35.51

 NFP

 NB

 NL

 NI

 IL

 SD

 LL

 LW

 D50%F FL

 FD

 FYLD

 GY

 NSF

 TSwt

 Swt

 FHI

 phenotypic traits


Table 1. Mean, mean squares, and least significant differences for morphological phenotypic traits of okra genotypes.

Genotypes

K

VI033775

VI033777

VI033778

VI033796

VI033797

VI033803

VI037993

VI037996

VI039618

VI039638

VI039651

VI039652

VI041210

VI041215

VI041763

VI046561

VI046567

VI047672

VI049632

VI050150

VI050956

VI050957

 18911.7167

 6711.7317

 3341.8667

 3097.9567

 605.7137

 213.1867

 73.3786

 48.9588

 35.9209

 18.8477

 7.8291

 13.2563 77

 25174.1333

 5645.9150

 3523.6000

 3844.0583

 550.9303

 267.0100

 39.8715

 32.6595

 33.1479

 22.7143

 7.6115

 16.8250

 19739.6833

 4545.3967

 3529.1033

 2866.0400

 375.8160

 349.8102

 131.2670

 36.4835

 36.8622

 22.2440

 6.6769

 13.7375

 26532.9667

 7061.0317

 4871.0333

 4544.9117

 565.4510

 219.7217

 46.9941

 37.2903

 46.2990

 20.4599

 9.7918

 20.4813

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.70813

 21399.2833

 7307.9933

 4188.6933

 4308.0267

 580.9880

 163.1217

 48.7502

 38.8493

 41.6830

 23.0591

 6.6877

 16.3625

 21929.6667

 5400.8167

 4072.6400

 3506.6067

 354.7370

 343.1148

 97.5733

 28.1606

 42.7555

 21.9402

 9.2944

 16.4313

 22492.4000

 5654.5283

 3447.9233

 3464.2400

 407.2767

 229.2835

 53.4742

 33.3572

 33.5706

 23.6109

 7.0620

 14.6813

 21640.4833

 7854.9067

 4073.6100

 3443.6567

 647.6400

 300.9452

 123.0660

 34.3759

 36.9295

 26.4952

 7.4171

 17.0000

Agronomic Performance, Nutritional Phenotyping and Trait Associations of Okra…

 26819.2833

 5868.2317

 5023.2233

 4119.1067

 334.1373

 450.2562

 167.4110

 31.2438

 46.4874

 25.0930

 8.3696

 15.8063

 22947.1500

 5933.6300

 3882.7467

 3427.8833

 358.7303

 364.1095

 122.3338

 38.2099

 34.9044

 31.9749

 8.3166

 21.4531

 20332.4500

 6799.6683

 4230.5233

 3538.3867

 458.9537

 229.6398

 53.5867

 38.2204

 35.1689

 21.8068

 6.1323

 16.1688

 18187.3667

 5633.1733

 3561.0367

 3248.9417

 445.8867

 543.2582

 198.0592

 32.4005

 35.5071

 25.3214

 8.8091

 15.4750

 19143.2500

 6434.1967

 3634.2800

 3239.2133

 541.3173

 237.0652

 58.1016

 33.6771

 35.9769

 21.1262

 7.0842

 18.0125

 20532.6667

 6145.3900

 4137.7267

 3254.7100

 473.0543

 327.1998

 134.5552

 35.0339

 37.3512

 19.3329

 7.1605

 20.1375

 19549.6333

 3625.8133

 3758.7700

 3042.0667

 465.9550

 314.0100

 52.6698

 27.7749

 39.8695

 18.1510

 7.7360

 19.1750

 25140.4000

 5251.9967

 4474.0133

 3384.7550

 346.3737

 196.7373

 50.2557

 30.8226

 41.6551

 21.2625

 9.1599

 18.2500

 29732.9667

 5251.9117

 5086.1233

 3859.9633

 360.7653

 244.4440

 86.3564

 33.0417

 43.5501

 23.3683

 9.0871

 14.6688

 19496.4000

 5459.1100

 3628.6400

 3283.7150

 465.3840

 319.8758

 87.9778

 35.3847

 39.5059

 21.5607

 5.7575

 13.8500

 24781.3500

 5659.1100

 4910.4033

 3933.0633

 316.2057

 580.2120

 286.3238

 27.1184

 48.0576

 33.4163

 8.6937

 13.1500

 20976.1833

 4039.0500

 3728.2700

 2848.3783

 427.8367

 587.3322

 248.2663

 29.1645

 39.4484

 21.5503

 9.5204

 11.7188

 20199.5500

 4049.4267

 3364.8200

 3049.9750

 365.9400

 243.1507

 63.6460

 26.5820

 32.9281

 15.0279

 7.3294

 14.9563

 21777.4667

 4919.5200

 3784.0067

 3113.6567

 566.6250

 305.4650

 66.4567

 34.1087

 33.8938

 22.1936

 6.9753

 16.2625

Ca

 P

Mg

Na

 Fe

Al

B

 Zn

 Mn

 Cu

 Proteina

Concentration

 of mineral elements (mg kg1) and total protein content (%) in dry basis


Genotypes

 Morphological

PH

MS Genotype

2851.36 ns 380.18\*\* 16.20\*\* 564.85\*\* 37.77\*\* 1581.03\*\* 97.02\*

(G)

MS Season (S) 715.43\*\*

MS G x S

CV (%) LSD (0.05) \*, \*\* significant at 0.05 and 0.01, respectively; MS: mean squares; CV: coefficient of variation; LSD: least significant difference; \*\*: highly significant at the 0.01 probability level; G: genotype; S: season; PH: plant height; NFP: number of fruits per plant; NB: number of branches per plant; NL: number of leaves per plant; NI: number of internodes; IL: internode length; SD: stem diameter; LL: leaf length; LW: leaf width; D5%F: days to 50%

flowering; FL: fruit length; FD: fruit diameter; FYLD: Fresh fruit yield; NSF: number of seeds per fruit; TSwt: 1000 seed weight; Swt: shell weight; FHI: fruit harvest index and GY: grain yield per plant.

Table 1. Mean, mean squares, and least significant differences

 for

morphological

 phenotypic

 traits of okra genotypes.

 57.48

 4.63

 2.95

 3.87

 2.69

 19.98

 9.31

 7.77

 4.92

 2.36

 7.25

 5.68

 50.2

 20.28

 15.55

 8.52

 41.91

 22.67

 7.91

 22.29

 25.87 7.76

 22.27 8.17

 16.15

 16.16

 27.18

 3.73

 6.77

 5.65

 7.57

 7.02

 5.32

 5.05

 7.83

 7.07

 7787.95\*\* 223.42\*\* 18.23\*\* 283.97\*\* 22.84\*\* 1453.34\*\* 199.89\*\* 120.91\*\*

 2062.66\*\* 641.63\*\* 126.00 ns 37.02 ns 15599.48\*\* 9490.11\*\* 10045.17\*\* 3991.76\*\* 128.76 ns 1937.33\*\* 16.18 ns 54306.32\*\* 32019.06\*\* 7945.44\*\* 1791.23\*\* 125752.76\*\* 46954.33\*\*

 NFP

 NB

 NL

 NI

 IL

 SD

 LL

 21.74 ns 8.08

 358.03\*\* 157.33\*\* 96.42\*\* 10797.12\*\* 907.67\*\*

 48.12\*\* 180.32\*\* 156.01\*\* 103.28\*\* 10195.02\*\* 1221.83\*\* 688.83\*\*

 LW

 D50%F FL

 FD

 FYLD

 GY

 NSF

 570.52\*\* 261.47\*\* 3779.95\*\* 235.34\*\* 5114.72\*\*

 1395.51\*\*

76 Rediscovery of Landraces as a Resource for the Future

 TSwt

 Swt

 FHI

 947.40\*\*

 phenotypic traits

Agronomic Performance, Nutritional Phenotyping and Trait Associations of Okra… http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.70813 77


Genotypes

K

VI060822

VI060824

G. mean LSD (0.01) M. squares

CV(%)

G. mean: grand mean; M. square: mean squares; CV: coefficient of variation; LSD: least significant difference; \*\*: highly significant at the 0.01 probability

factor of 6.25; K+: potassium; Table 2. Mean values for the

 calcium: Ca2+; concentration

 of selected mineral elements and crude protein content in the immature fruits of okra genotypes.

phosphorus:

 P3; magnesium:

 Mg2+; sodium: Na+; iron: Fe2+; manganese:

 Mn2+; B3+; aluminum:

 Al3+, Zn2+ and copper: Cu+.

 2.60

25960000.00\*\*

 3993160\*\*

1.00

 1.20

 1.10

 3.80

 2.80

 4.20

 2.80

 4.50

 1.80

 8.80

 level; a

conversion

Agronomic Performance, Nutritional Phenotyping and Trait Associations of Okra…

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79

 1.40

 901596.00\*\*

 690456.00\*\*

 43058.20\*\*

 63194.89\*\*

 24920.75\*\*

 56.08\*\*

 76.06\*\*

 63.46\*\*

 4.04\*\*

 60.65\*\*

 950.10

 95.05

 79.43

 60.04

 29.61

 15.39

 8.26

 1.50

 2.79

 0.69

 1.10

 0.33

 22591.4630

 5748.1354

 4003.6012

 3507.1444

 475.1095

 333.2189

 121.5722

 33.5885

 38.3313

 23.6905

 7.7005

 14.5054

 24137.4500

 4564.6567

 3796.4967

 3204.3767

 346.6313

 746.5115

 462.5675

 31.2123

 38.4833

 29.4813

 5.9867

 16.6813

 23264.7500

 6857.1450

 4022.7600

 3973.4783

 505.8723

 118.2778

 40.3196

 36.9215

 35.6317

 29.4834

 6.6292

 16.8844

Ca

 P

Mg

Na

 Fe

Al

B

 Zn

 Mn

 Cu

 Proteina

Concentration

 of mineral elements (mg kg1) and total protein content (%) in dry basis

Genotypes

Concentration

 of mineral elements (mg kg1) and total protein content (%) in dry basis


Genotypes

K

VI050958

VI050960

VI055110

VI055119

VI055219

VI055220

VI055421

VI055423

VI055884

VI055996

VI056069

VI056079

VI056081

VI056449

VI056450

VI056457

VI060131

VI060313

VI060678

VI060679

VI060802

VI060803

 20822.4333

 5370.3683

 3266.7200

 3014.2350

 505.6263

 292.1103

 66.6540

 34.0651

 35.9979

 21.4352

 6.7664

 13.2188

 23664.0333

 3282.7067

 4423.4400

 3438.6433

 338.7350

 626.8430

 315.8953

 26.7719

 45.3539

 23.1645

 7.8676

 14.1031

 17983.3167

 6812.6650

 3331.1167

 3023.8683

 630.4910

 524.9860

 250.7027

 35.8244

 34.4461

 22.9563

 7.3806

 13.3813

 20507.9667

 4557.0733

 3709.7167

 2944.3133

 454.7623

 339.4737

 136.0335

 37.2839

 36.7775

 22.4670

 6.3063

 0.0000

 22134.4167

 6565.3033

 3187.5967

 3537.5250

 778.8260

 258.7387

 36.2318

 31.8077

 26.9255

 22.8010

 7.0514

 15.7750

 18126.8833

 6714.2217

 3888.1533

 2935.2733

 753.2457

 231.2972

 55.9428

 34.7359

 40.4822

 15.7953

 8.1000

 13.1188

 19639.6500

 4436.3000

 2992.7300

 2935.7233

 688.4357

 184.4547

 55.1700

 34.1046

 29.9832

 15.7108

 4.7011

 18.3469

 20130.4667

 5227.5867

 3508.4967

 2993.3767

 435.4760

 615.2870

 217.4698

 27.4518

 33.7007

 30.4491

 8.6698

 0.0000

 22553.7000

 5359.5200

 4707.8667

 3515.1033

 440.1860

 275.8338

 110.4897

 28.1297

 29.1162

 19.2992

 7.3364

 15.8969

 24805.6667

 7059.3000

 4299.2600

 4213.8217

 606.2797

 138.0773

 61.8873

 38.9608

 43.3255

 20.0586

 8.8108

 14.1344

 25276.4667

 5577.5167

 4487.2500

 4071.8733

 611.6603

 248.1673

 200.1460

 37.7277

 40.0674

 25.4336

 7.1736

 14.5063

 28706.5167

 6461.0400

 4559.9067

 4027.2917

 458.7717

 568.4727

 248.5053

 32.3390

 41.9579

 26.1344

 7.8264

 13.5438

 23505.8000

 7743.9483

 4134.1000

 4332.8850

 487.7183

 312.7035

 62.6846

 34.3182

 44.9328

 27.8276

 8.7146

 0.0000

 26798.8667

 6911.8150

 4562.8467

 4272.4200

 378.2300

 211.1957

 43.7957

 35.2969

 43.8937

 25.6543

 9.8447

 15.1625

 26855.7833

 8242.4900

 5246.9500

 4346.0583

 387.0487

 269.0805

 77.1162

 37.6389

 46.8939

 38.4287

 9.8883

 10.5063

 22250.2333

 5170.7733

 4055.0100

 3382.7017

 541.3853

 329.6240

 154.7592

 36.9024

 37.6627

 25.2132

 7.3251

 16.9313

 22039.1167

 4959.4950

 3930.5167

 3313.6267

 470.6367

 331.5973

 170.5438

 31.1861

 37.3141

 24.7236

 8.7069

 13.9250

 23070.6500

 4870.4083

 3764.9300

 3397.6450

 602.0480

 320.4245

 69.9319

 27.1459

 31.2486

 26.2729

 6.6490

 13.1188

 19443.2833

 5290.2550

 3633.6933

 3186.2433

 410.1533

 305.7237

 98.7495

 37.6476

 36.2588

 21.0558

 7.2133

 17.1688

 22807.7500

 5744.4700

 3869.0600

 3454.7217

 390.3277

 524.4017

 235.1390

 33.6967

 38.6857

 23.5905

 8.1426

 13.6375

78 Rediscovery of Landraces as a Resource for the Future

 22861.0000

 4190.5433

 3760.5800

 3129.9400

 244.8727

 214.4395

 42.9363

 31.1971

 36.5446

 21.9904

 6.8090

 16.6438

 30384.6500

 7192.0783

 4773.4067

 4264.1850

 371.8990

 311.4003

 88.2743

 29.7895

 46.0846

 29.7776

 7.8219

 12.7063

Ca

 P

Mg

Na

 Fe

Al

B

 Zn

 Mn

 Cu

 Proteina

Concentration

 of mineral elements (mg kg1) and total protein content (%) in dry basis

Table 2. Mean values for the concentration of selected mineral elements and crude protein content in the immature fruits of okra genotypes. Mineral analysis: K+ , Ca2+, P3, Mg2+, Na+ , Fe2+, Mn2+, B3+, Al3+, Zn2+ and Cu<sup>+</sup> contents in the samples of immature fruits were determined using the inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometric method [26].

reported the average mean value of 6.00, which was lower than the values reported in the current study. They also reported 20.00 fruits per plant, which was lower than the values found in the current investigation. Furthermore, [32] reported the number of fruits per plant that varied from 3.22 to 5.67 in Nigeria. The immature fruits of okra are consumed as a vegetable and should be fresh, tender, and green without indication of coloration. Selection of potential parents based on this phenotypic trait would be essential in okra breeding programmes to

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81

Number of branches ranged from 3.83 to 10.44 and the highest value was recorded in genotype VI060313 and closely followed by VI055219. Moreover, the number of leaves ranged from 21.00 in genotype VI055996 to 60.67 in genotype VI050956 followed by VI060131, VI055119 and VI037993 during flowering. Leaves are the primary sources of photosynthesis to produce better yield and yield-related traits in okra genotypes. The values currently reported were higher than the values what [32] reported in Nigeria. Highly significant variation was also observed in the number of internodes, internode length, stem diameter, leaf length and width. The genotype that had tallness gene had highest number of internodes, internode length, and thick stem. The thicker the stem, resists the environmental influences from lodging and can withstand high fruit yield. Days to 50% flowering varied from 46.63 to 74.50 and influenced by genotype and genotype by season interaction. The genotype VI050956 was the first to flower, which is significantly flowered early compared to the rest of the genotypes. Some of the genotypes were expected to be similar in early flowering (Table 1). This genotype could be selected for earliness trait. Early maturing in okra genotypes can be useful to escape drought condition and can be cultivated as climate change crop in drought prone areas of South Africa. Therefore, this trait is potentially very important in okra improvement programmes for earliness and drought escaper genes. Depending on the traits of interest, the user of this crop can select the genotypes for early maturity or late maturity groups for future use. These values reported in the present study were lower than the values reported in Nigeria for days to 50% flowering among the genotypes [30]. Fruit length significantly varied from 10.41 to 32.32 in which the highest value was recorded in genotype VI055777. This trait is the most economically important trait, which affects the yield of okra. As a fruit vegetable crop, the longer pods are very important for consumption and preferred by the consumers in the South Africa, therefore, this trait is important as selection criteria for the improvement programme of okra in the county. Ref. [30] reported that fruit length is the most important determinants in okra production. The wider the size and the longer the fruit is associated with higher number of seeds in the fruit per plant. In this study, the widest fruit was recorded in the genotypes VI037993 and VI039652 with the highest number of seed (67.78) per plant and thousand seed weight, which were the primary determination of the ultimate yield in okra. Hence, widest fruit, highest number of seeds and thousand seed weight were considered as selection criteria for the breeding of okra genotypes for yield and yield related traits. Ref. [33] reported that seed weight is largely a function of seed components such as protein, fat, ash, and nitrogen free extracts. The highest fresh fruit yield, number of seeds per fruit and grain yield per plant were found in the genotypes VI046567 and VI060802. The values reported in the present study were higher than the values reported by [30] in 21 okra genotypes. The genotypes that produced the heaviest pod wall (fruit shell wall) could be selected for parental lines to produce high fodder

develop new cultivar in the country.

#### 2.3. Data and analysis

The morphological phenotypic and nutritional data were subjected to analysis of variance using Agronomix computer software [27]. The means of all okra genotypes were compared by the least significance difference (LSD) at 0.05 probability level. The mean data were standardized and subjected to multivariate analysis [28] using principal component analysis (PCA). The correlation coefficients were also computed to determine the degree of trait association [28].
