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*Author for Correspondence: Email: amulyahiriyur@gmail.com
Bael is an underutilized, indigenous and designated as vulnerable species. The pilgrimage centre Shri Kalmurudeshwaraswamy matha of Sakharayapattana in Chikkamagaluru district in Karnataka, India has a sacred groove of bael trees. Due to natural sexual propagation they have acquired a high level of variability. Hence, the documentation and conservation of this groove is essential. A total of 356 trees of bael were evaluated for growth, fruit characters and showed considerable variations. Among 356 trees, SB-353 was found superior with respect to fruit characters viz., length (13 cm), volume (310 cm3), weight (68.03 g), pulp weigh (202.40 g) and higher pupl:seed (10.22). For stability, the plus tree has to be evaluated for future usage in bael improvement.
Bael, Correlation studies, Fruit morphological parameters, Tree morphological parameters