Evaluation of morphological diversity of some Plantago ovata ecotypes

This study was performed to evaluate the morphological diversity in 16 Plantago ovata ecotypes in a randomized complete block design with three replications using 22 morphological traits. In cluster analysis using standardized data, the distances between the ecotypes were estimated with the square Euclidean distance method and the dendrogram was plotted by Ward’s method. Factor analysis was performed by Verimax method. The mean squares of ecotypes were significant for all traits, except the amount and percentage of mucilage. The results of cluster analysis grouped the ecotypes into three clusters. The accuracy of the results of clustering was confirmed by discriminant function analysis. In factor analysis, five factors were extracted that explained 86.77% of the variance among traits. The most important effective traits in determining the variance were plant height, inflorescence tail length, spike length, harvest index and 1000-seed weight, which were in the first factor. Morphological diversity among the ecotypes was significant for most traits and PO12, PO15, and PO6 ecotypes were superior to the other ecotypes in terms of mean grain yield and mucilage content.