Genetic Diversity in Four Color Beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) Using Morphological Traits and Their Relationship to Grain Yield

Common bean is a dicotyledonous and diploid (2n=22) plant. The archaeologies history showed that its origin is Latin & South America. In order to study genetic diversity in four color beans (White, Red, Chiti & Black) by morphological traits a balanced group block design with three replications was conducted in 2004 at the research station of Tehran University, Karaj. Stepwise regression and path analysis of five traits, related to pod characteristics, showed that, pod weight and days to 50% poding were the most effective traits on grain yield (R2=0.896 and 0.022, with direct effect of 1.917, and -1.621 and correlation coefficient of 0.909 and 0.667, respectively). Factor analysis showed six latent factors that affected about 80% variation of the yield. Cluster analysis by the Ward method divided the genotypes into three separate groups. Red and white colors were in one group, because they had the closest relationship. This group was more related to the chiti but less related to the black color cultivares.