Evaluation of common bean(Phaseolus vulgaris L.)genotypes for drought stress adaptation in Ethiopia

Drought stress linked with climate change is one of the major constraints faced by common bean farmers in Africa and elsewhere. Mitigating this constraint requires the selection of resilient varieties that withstand drought threats to common bean production.This study assessed the drought response of 64 small red-seeded genotypes of common bean grown in a lattice design replicated twice under contrasting moisture regimes,terminal drought stress and non-stress, in Ethiopia during the dry season from November2014 to March 2015. Multiple plant traits associated with drought were assessed for their contribution to drought adaptation of the genotypes. Drought stress determined by a drought intensity index was moderate(0.3). All the assessed traits showed significantly different genotypic responses under drought stress and non-stress conditions. Eleven genotypes significantly(P ≤ 0.05) outperformed the drought check cultivar under both drought stress and non-stress conditions in seed yielding potential. Seed yield showed positive and significant correlations with chlorophyll meter reading, vertical root pulling resistance force, number of pods per plant, and seeds per pod under both soil moisture regimes, indicating their potential use in selection of genotypes yielding well under drought stress and non-stress conditions. Clustering analysis using Mahalanobis distance grouped the genotypes into four groups showing high and significant inter-cluster distance, suggesting that hybridization between drought-adapted parents from the groups will provide the maximum genetic recombination for drought tolerance in subsequent generations.

Trait associations in common bean genotypes grown under drought stress and field infestation by BSM bean fly

Understanding functional relations among plant traits and their modulation by growing conditions is imperative in designing selection strategies for breeding programs. This study assessed trait relationships among 196 common bean genotypes exposed to stresses for drought and field infestation of bean fly or bean stem maggot(BSM). The study was carried out at two locations and data was analyzed with linear correlation, path coefficient and genotype × trait biplot analyses. Multiple trait data related to mechanisms of drought and bean fly tolerance were collected on 196 genotypes grown under i) water deficit at mid-pod fill, or ii) unprotected against bean fly; iii) irrigated, well watered conditions, or iv) bean fly protection with chemicals. Seed yield exhibited positive and significant correlations with leaf chlorophyll content, vertical root pulling resistance, pod harvest index, pods per plant and seeds per pod at both phenotypic and genotypic levels under stress and non-stress conditions. Genotypic correlations of traits with seed yield were greater than their respective phenotypic correlations across environments indicating the greater contribution of genotypic factors to the trait correlation. Pods per plant and seeds per pod had high positive direct effects on seed yield both under stress and non-stress whereas pods per plant had the highest indirect effect on seed yield through pod harvest index under stress.In general, our results suggest that vertical root pulling resistance and pod harvest index are important selection objectives for improving seed yield in common beans under non-stress and stress conditions, and particularly useful for drought and BSM tolerance evaluation.

Quantification of drought tolerance in Ethiopian common bean varieties

Understanding the level of drought tolerance of the varieties available in each country is of paramount importance for breeding common bean for drought adaptation. The goal of this study was to evaluate 25 common bean genotypes of which 24 were released/recommended varieties for production by farmers and one was a drought tolerant check. The genotypes were planted at two sites in Ethiopia, Hawasssa and Amaro, using variable sowing dates, one that was early to avoid drought and one that was late to expose the crop to drought. The experiments were repeated over two years in Hawassa and one year in Amaro. This resulted in treatments with high and low total seasonal rainfall and six environments for analysis. The impact of drought stress on the trait expression of the varieties was not uniform across traits assessed and varieties tested. The effect of drought on photosynthate translocation and partitioning traits was much greater than on yield component traits in the varieties studied. This indicating less breeding efforts has been made in improving the varieties ability to mobilize photosynthate to the developing grain as compared to the yield component traits. Drought tolerant varieties like Hawassa Dume maintained better photosynthate translocation and partitioning than the drought sensitive varieties like Brown Speckled bean. Hawassa Dume also showed better yield stability and performed well under both drought stress and nonstress conditions. Our results indicate the relevance of high levels of photosynthate translocation and partitioning as an effective selection objective for improving drought tolerance in common bean. The information generated on the drought tolerance of the available varieties should help in the design of a breeding strategy that incorporates adaptation traits with commercial characteristics preferred by common bean farmers for varieties to be grown in diverse environments.