Prediction of Plant Height in Okra [Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench] through Seedling Markers

Okra is especially valued for its tender and delicious fruits in different parts of the country. It has a great potential for earning foreign exchange and accounts for about 60% of the export of fresh vegetables excluding potato, onion and garlic. Plant height in okra affects the effective flowering branches and ultimately fruit yield. Wide range of plant height has been observed in okra and farmers fail to understand the plant habit on or before sowing of the crop. The present investigation was carried out with 25 okra cultivars at Indian Institute of Vegetable Research, Varanasi to find out seedling markers for plant height in okra. The observation were recorded on germination percentage, plumule length/shoot length, radical length, total seedling length, seedling fresh weight, seedling dry weight, dry matter percentage and plant height. The plant height ranged from 43.36 cm (No. 315) to 125.06 cm (IIVR-10). The maximum plumule length was found in HRB-55 (17.5 cm) and IIVR-10 (17.47) while minimum was recorded from No. 315 (10.60) and VRO-5 (11.60). Results indicated that varieties No. 315 and VRO-5 were found bushy in nature as well as with shortest plumule and radical length. None of the other characters had any direct relationship with plant height. Therefore, on the basis of plumule and radical length, the plant height in okra could be predicted.