A stability analysis of time to flowering as a screen for responsiveness to temperature and photoperiod in cowpea (Vigna unguiculata).
Abstract
Twenty-one genotypes of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata), comprising landraces and varieties, were grown in 22 photothermal environments in Nigeria and Niger, West Africa, and a stability analysis of days from sowing to flowering (f) was carried out. Cowpeas are rarely insensitive to photoperiod; they are typically quantitative shortday plants wherein f is delayed when photoperiod (P) is longer than the critical photoperiod (P c ). Therefore, in order to quantify genotypic variation in temperature sensitivity, genotype f was regressed against the mean trial f in circumstances where photoperiod was approximately 13 hd-1 and mean temperature (T) was between 19° and 28° C. Correspondingly, in order to assess genotypic variation in photoperiod sensitivity, trials where T was near optimal (25°–28° C) but where P ranged from 10–14.5 hd-1 were used. These stability analyses detected no significant differences between genotypes 9n temperature sensitivity but revealed significant differences (P
Citation
Craufurd, P.Q.; Roberts, E.H.; Ellis, R.H.; Summerfield, R.J. A stability analysis of time to flowering as a screen for responsiveness to temperature and photoperiod in cowpea (Vigna unguiculata). Euphytica (1996) 88 (1) 77-84. [DOI: 10.1007/BF00029268]