Genetic divergence studies in safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) germplasm lines

Ninety safflower genotypes representing diverse geographic regions were studied for genetic divergence using Mahalanobis D² static. The genotypes were grouped into 12 clusters. Seed yield contributed maximum to the total divergence. The maximum inter cluster distance was observed between cluster VIII and cluster XI whereas minimum distance between the clusters IV and XII. The accession 41 is the distinct one which can be highly utilized in further breeding programme. Selection of the genotypes from these clusters for hybridization programme may result in good recombinants.