1Estación Experimental Agraria Chincha (EEA Chincha). Instituto Nacional de Innovación Agraria (INIA). Carretera Antigua Panamericana Sur, Km. 200.5, Alto Larán, Chincha-Ica (Peru)
2Escuela Profesional de Agronomía. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Universidad Nacional De Cañete. Panamericana Sur, Km. 139. Mz. A. Lte. 1. Fundo Don Luis, San Luis, Cañete-Lima (Peru)
*Corresponding Author: Marcos Camargo-Cobeñas, Estación Experimental Agraria Chincha (EEA Chincha). Instituto Nacional de Innovación Agraria (INIA). Carretera Antigua Panamericana Sur, Km. 200.5, Alto Larán, Chincha-Ica (Peru), Email: mcamargo@inia.gob.pe
Phaseolus vulgaris L. is a globally important legume due to its nutritional value and its contribution to food security and agricultural sustainability. Although Peruvian germplasm exhibits high phenotypic variability, information regarding accessions from the INIA Germplasm Bank remains limited. This study characterized the phenotypic diversity of 66 accessions using diversity indices and multivariate analyses under coastal Peruvian conditions.
A total of 35 agro-morphological traits (18 qualitative and 17 quantitative) were evaluated using CIAT descriptors. Diversity was assessed using Shannon and Pielou evenness indices, as well as multivariate analyses including hierarchical clustering based on Gower distance, FAMD, PCA and MCA.
High phenotypic variability was observed, resulting in four distinct clusters. FAMD showed that hundred-seed weight, leaf width and length and primary seed color were the main contributors to total variance. PCA revealed a positive correlation between seed weight and leaf traits, whereas the number of pods per plant and seeds per pod showed a negative association with these variables. MCA and diversity indices highlighted seed color, growth habit and standard petal pigmentation as key discriminating traits. Cluster II exhibited the highest dispersion and phenotypic diversity, whereas Cluster IV showed higher yield-related components, demonstrating the potential of these accessions for use in breeding programs and genetic resource conservation.
Cluster analysis, FAMD, Morphological traits, Phenotypic variation, Plant genetic resources
