Evaluation of <i>Kabuli</i> Chickpea Genotypes for Terminal Drought Tolerance in Tropical Growing Environment
Terminal drought is the major constraint for chickpea production, leading to yield losses of up to 90% in tropical environments. Understanding the morphological, phenological, and physiological traits underlying drought tolerance is crucial for developing resilient chickpea genotypes. This study elu...
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MDPI AG
2025-03-01
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| author | Megha Subedi Mani Naiker Ryan du Preez Dante L. Adorada Surya Bhattarai |
| author_facet | Megha Subedi Mani Naiker Ryan du Preez Dante L. Adorada Surya Bhattarai |
| author_sort | Megha Subedi |
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| description | Terminal drought is the major constraint for chickpea production, leading to yield losses of up to 90% in tropical environments. Understanding the morphological, phenological, and physiological traits underlying drought tolerance is crucial for developing resilient chickpea genotypes. This study elucidates the drought-tolerant traits of eight <i>kabuli</i> chickpea genotypes under a controlled environment using polyvinyl chloride (PVC) lysimeters. Terminal drought was imposed after the flowering stage, and the response was assessed against non-stress (well-watered) treatment. Drought stress significantly impacted gas-exchange parameters, reducing the stomatal conductance (16–35%), chlorophyll content (10–22%), carbon assimilation rate (21–40%) and internal carbon concentration (7–14%). Principal component analysis (PCA) indicated three groups among these eight genotypes. The drought-tolerant group included two genotypes (AVTCPK#6 and AVTCPK#19) with higher water use efficiency (WUE), deep-rooted plants, longer maturity, and seed yield stability under drought stress. In contrast, the drought-susceptible group included two genotypes (AVTCPK#1 and AVTCPK#12) that were early-maturing and low-yielding with poor assimilation rates. The intermediate group included four genotypes (AVTCPK#3, AVTCPK8, AVTCPK#24, and AVTCPK#25) that exhibited medium maturity and medium yield, conferring intermediate tolerance to terminal drought. A significantly strong positive correlation was observed between seed yield and key physiological traits (stomatal conductance (gsw), leaf chlorophyll content (SPAD) and carbon assimilation rate (A<sub>sat</sub>)) and morphological traits (plant height, number of pods, and root biomass). Conversely, carbon discrimination (Δ<sup>13</sup>C) and intrinsic WUE (iWUE) showed a strong negative correlation with seed yield, supporting Δ<sup>13</sup>C as a surrogate for WUE and drought tolerance and a trait suitable for the selection of <i>kabuli</i> chickpea genotypes for drought resilience. |
| format | Article |
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| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2223-7747 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Plants |
| spelling | doaj-art-323e61b326f84a6fa277effdcc0ef0302025-08-20T02:59:00ZengMDPI AGPlants2223-77472025-03-0114580610.3390/plants14050806Evaluation of <i>Kabuli</i> Chickpea Genotypes for Terminal Drought Tolerance in Tropical Growing EnvironmentMegha Subedi0Mani Naiker1Ryan du Preez2Dante L. Adorada3Surya Bhattarai4School of Health, Medical and Applied Sciences, Central Queensland University, Rockhampton, QLD 4701, AustraliaSchool of Health, Medical and Applied Sciences, Central Queensland University, Rockhampton, QLD 4701, AustraliaSchool of Health, Medical and Applied Sciences, Central Queensland University, Rockhampton, QLD 4701, AustraliaCentre for Crop Health, Institute for Life Science and the Environment, University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, QLD 4350, AustraliaSchool of Health, Medical and Applied Sciences, Central Queensland University, Rockhampton, QLD 4701, AustraliaTerminal drought is the major constraint for chickpea production, leading to yield losses of up to 90% in tropical environments. Understanding the morphological, phenological, and physiological traits underlying drought tolerance is crucial for developing resilient chickpea genotypes. This study elucidates the drought-tolerant traits of eight <i>kabuli</i> chickpea genotypes under a controlled environment using polyvinyl chloride (PVC) lysimeters. Terminal drought was imposed after the flowering stage, and the response was assessed against non-stress (well-watered) treatment. Drought stress significantly impacted gas-exchange parameters, reducing the stomatal conductance (16–35%), chlorophyll content (10–22%), carbon assimilation rate (21–40%) and internal carbon concentration (7–14%). Principal component analysis (PCA) indicated three groups among these eight genotypes. The drought-tolerant group included two genotypes (AVTCPK#6 and AVTCPK#19) with higher water use efficiency (WUE), deep-rooted plants, longer maturity, and seed yield stability under drought stress. In contrast, the drought-susceptible group included two genotypes (AVTCPK#1 and AVTCPK#12) that were early-maturing and low-yielding with poor assimilation rates. The intermediate group included four genotypes (AVTCPK#3, AVTCPK8, AVTCPK#24, and AVTCPK#25) that exhibited medium maturity and medium yield, conferring intermediate tolerance to terminal drought. A significantly strong positive correlation was observed between seed yield and key physiological traits (stomatal conductance (gsw), leaf chlorophyll content (SPAD) and carbon assimilation rate (A<sub>sat</sub>)) and morphological traits (plant height, number of pods, and root biomass). Conversely, carbon discrimination (Δ<sup>13</sup>C) and intrinsic WUE (iWUE) showed a strong negative correlation with seed yield, supporting Δ<sup>13</sup>C as a surrogate for WUE and drought tolerance and a trait suitable for the selection of <i>kabuli</i> chickpea genotypes for drought resilience.https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/5/806<i>kabuli</i>chickpeaterminal droughttropical adaptation |
| spellingShingle | Megha Subedi Mani Naiker Ryan du Preez Dante L. Adorada Surya Bhattarai Evaluation of <i>Kabuli</i> Chickpea Genotypes for Terminal Drought Tolerance in Tropical Growing Environment Plants <i>kabuli</i> chickpea terminal drought tropical adaptation |
| title | Evaluation of <i>Kabuli</i> Chickpea Genotypes for Terminal Drought Tolerance in Tropical Growing Environment |
| title_full | Evaluation of <i>Kabuli</i> Chickpea Genotypes for Terminal Drought Tolerance in Tropical Growing Environment |
| title_fullStr | Evaluation of <i>Kabuli</i> Chickpea Genotypes for Terminal Drought Tolerance in Tropical Growing Environment |
| title_full_unstemmed | Evaluation of <i>Kabuli</i> Chickpea Genotypes for Terminal Drought Tolerance in Tropical Growing Environment |
| title_short | Evaluation of <i>Kabuli</i> Chickpea Genotypes for Terminal Drought Tolerance in Tropical Growing Environment |
| title_sort | evaluation of i kabuli i chickpea genotypes for terminal drought tolerance in tropical growing environment |
| topic | <i>kabuli</i> chickpea terminal drought tropical adaptation |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/5/806 |
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