Phenetic & Taxonomic evaluation of vegetative and reproductive characters of the genus Secale L. (Poaceae) in Iran

The genus Secale (Poaceae, Triticeae) was described first by Linnaeus. Based on the latest taxonomic treatment the genus contains three species, four subspecies and two varieties. Secale taxa are naturally occurring in Mediterranean areas, Eastern Europe to central Asia and South Africa. This study concerns the evaluation of taxonomic value of morphological characters and phenetic among Secale taxa in Iran. Our statistical analyses were done using the software STATISTICA. The resulting data matrix used for cluster analysis and Factor analysis. The results of this study showed that there is no diagnostic morphological character among the studied populations of Secale. The homogeneity of the morphological characters can be caused by gene flow and hybridization in this taxon, limited the taxonomic value of such traits. Based on the results of this study it can be concluded that there is a little possibility for effective separation of Secale species based on morphological characters.