Evaluation of F₁ population derived through controlled hybridization for drought tolerance in tea

Tea-growing regions in South India experience a prolonged drought period from mid-December to mid-April, which significantly impacts the productivity of tea plantations and, in extreme cases, leads to plant mortality. As tea is primarily cultivated under rainfed conditions, developing drought-tolerant cultivars is crucial for sustaining production during dry spells. Despite limited reports of drought tolerance in only three tea clones, this study aims to enhance drought tolerance by creating an F₁ population through controlled hybridization. The hybridization involved the introduction of the Japanese tea clone Yabukita into the South Indian tea germplasm. A total of 144 F₁ progenies were developed and evaluated for drought tolerance over four years. Key photosynthetic parameters, including stomatal conductance (Gs), water use efficiency (WUE), net photosynthetic rate (Pn), transpiration rate (Tr), and the number of crop shoots produced during the drought season, were assessed. Based on these parameters, 30 drought-tolerant F₁ progenies were identified. These findings highlight the potential of hybridization in developing drought-tolerant tea cultivars for regions facing water scarcity.