Review of the sesame breeding by characteristic analysis on the varieties in Henan province

The results of characteristic comparison and principal component analysis showed that the major .characteristics of sesame varieties in Henan province were improved in the past decades. The sesame breeding works in the province were focused on the collection and the screening of the native germplasms from 1950 to 1969 and the mean values of the variety characteristics were the lowest. In 1970s,the pedigree breeding was mainly conducted,which resulted in the release of varieties of various types with better traits. During 1980s,the hybridization breeding was carried out dominantly with the varieties possessing fine traits. Since 1990,there were no better varieties released. To make new progresses,it is essential to renew the breeding method and at the same time to introduce and create special germplasms to widen the genetic background.