Agro-Morphological Evaluation and Correlation Analysis of Advanced Soybean (Glycine max L.) Lines in the Lasbela district of Balochistan

Abstract

The present study was conducted to evaluate the genetic variability, morphological performance, and correlation among yield-related traits in 26 advanced soybean lines. Analysis of variance revealed highly significant differences (P≤0.01) among genotypes for all studied traits, indicating the presence of substantial genetic diversity. Germination percentage ranged from 20% to 96.67% with an overall mean of 62.90%, where line L-17426 exhibited maximum germination while L-24506 showed the minimum. Days to flowering varied from 42.10 to 54.11 days, with an average of 45.19 days, indicating variability in maturity behavior among genotypes. Number of flowers, bunches of flowers, branches, and leaves also differed significantly, reflecting broad genetic variation for vegetative and reproductive growth attributes. Line L-24564 consistently performed superior for several important characters including number of flowers, branches, leaves, pods plant⁻¹, 100 seed weight, plant height, and biological yield. Leaf area index ranged from 21.85 to 48.69 cm² with a mean of 34.82 cm², while plant height varied between 7.44 and 21.81 cm. Pods plant⁻¹ ranged from 6.15 to 21.35 with an average of 13.77, whereas grains pod⁻¹ varied from 2.56 to 7.68. Hundred seed weight ranged from 1.98 to 10.97 g, and biological yield ranged from 6.45 to 26.57 g, further confirming significant variability among soybean lines. The superior performance of lines such as L-24564, L-17422, and L-24563 suggested their suitability for future breeding and varietal development programs. Correlation analysis demonstrated that germination percentage had significant positive association with hundred seed weight, bunches of flowers, plant height, and pods plant⁻¹, indicating its contribution toward yield improvement. Days to flowering showed positive correlations with several yield-contributing traits including hundred seed weight and biological yield, whereas plant height exhibited positive relationships with biological yield, leaf area, bunches of flowers, and seed weight. Pods plant⁻¹ and 100 seed weight were strongly associated with biological yield, suggesting their importance as selection criteria in soybean breeding. Conversely, grains pod⁻¹ showed negative correlation with biological yield and some reproductive traits. Overall, the study confirmed the existence of considerable genetic variability among advanced soybean lines for important agronomic and yield-related characters.