Short Communication
Range Mgmt. & Agroforestry 42 (1) : 175-180, 2021
ISSN 0971-2070
Heritability, genetic gain and correlation among progenies of Pongamia pinnata (L.) Pierre
for morphological traits
Rakesh Kumar Garg1* and N. Kaushik2
1
Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana-141004, India
2
Regional Research Station, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Bawal-123501, India
*Corresponding author e-mail: gargrk72@pau.edu
Received: 22nd April, 2020
Abstract
Sixteen progenies of Pongamia pinnata were selected
from the progeny trial consisting of forty progenies
collected from the states of Punjab and Haryana and
subjected to the field conditions to identify promising
progenies for future afforestation programmes. Based
on field performance after 4 years of planting, the
estimates of phenotypic and genotypic coefficients of
variation reflected the presence of a large amount of
genetic variability for diameter at breast height (DBH),
the number of branches, intermodal length and their
mean annual increments (MAI) and reasonable amount
of genetic variability for tree height. Heritability estimates
reflected the predominance of heritable variation for all
the characters under study. The estimates of genetic
advance as percentage of mean suggested the
potentiality of the progeny material for the improvement
of DBH, number of branches and intermodal length
through selection. Significant positive correlation was
observed between DBH and tree height. Path analysis
revealed that tree height and mean annual increment of
DBH had the highest direct effect on the number of
branches and can be used as selection criteria for
improving this species. Progeny number 9, 10 and 14
were found to be best based on most of the characters.
Keywords: Correlation, Pongamia pinnata, Progeny,
Variation
Pongamia pinnata, also known as karanja tree, Indian-
beech, pongam tree, is indigenous to Indian sub-
continent and south-east Asia and is a member of
Leguminosae family. The tree has been introduced to
several countries with humid tropical lowlands as well
as parts of Australia. Historically, this plant has been used
in India as a source of traditional medicines, animal
fodder, green manure, timber, fish poison and fuel, and
now it is a sustainable source of biofuels (Scott et al.,
2008). The Pongamia pinnata leaves contain 43% dry
Accepted: 12th January, 2021
matter, 18% crude protein and 62% neutral detergent
fiber with 50% in vitro dry matter digestibility and are eaten
by cattle and goats. The trees have a significant value in
arid regions, however its use is not common. It is rich in
protein, but possesses several toxic flavonoids like 1.25%
karanjin and 0.85% pongamol alkaloid, resin, mucilage,
sugar and tannin. However, the deoiled cakes could be
used as animal feed (Usharani et al., 2019). Due to its
various uses, particularly in the energy sector, several
efforts have been made the world over to explore its
potential for providing valuable oil to minimize the
dependence on depleting fossil fuel resources.
Government of India also took steps in this direction by
funding the research institutions like State Agricultural
Universities for carrying out intensive research and
explores promising genotypes of this important species
having potential for higher seed yield. In the present
investigation, variation and association studies were
carried out among different progenies of Pongamia
pinnata to identify the progenies with higher foliage growth
which is also directly related to the higher fodder yield
leading to sustainable animal production, particularly in
dry zones of India (Shinde and Mahanta, 2020).
The present study was carried out in experimental area
of Department of Forestry & Natural Resources, Punjab
Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab, India. The
experimental site is located at an elevation of 244 meters
above mean sea level with a latitude of 30° 56' North and
longitude of 75° 48' East in the sub-tropical region. The
site is characterized by hot and dry summers and cold
winters. The average annual rainfall is 700 mm, 75 per
cent of which is received from July to September. The
soil was silty loam in texture. Forty progenies exhibiting
distinct morphometric characteristics were selected from
the natural populations of Pongamia pinnata from the
states of Punjab and Haryana. These progenies were
grown in the nursery for initial screening for selection of
promising genotypes/progenies for testing under field
 Genetic parameters estimates in Pongamia pinnata
conditions. Sixteen promising progenies (eight each
from Punjab and Haryana) were selected and planted
under field conditions to identify the most promising ones
for incorporating in mass afforestation programmes
(Table 1).
The experiment was laid out in a randomized block
design with four replications at a uniform spacing of 4 x
4 m 2. Tree height, diameter at breast height (DBH),
number of branches and internodal length were recorded
at the age of 4 years after planting to record variation and
estimation of genetic parameters. Analysis of variance
was carried out as per the method suggested by Panse
and Sukhatme (1978) using CPCS1 software. Mean
annual increment for different growth parameters was
calculated by dividing the total growth for that parameter
with total age i.e., four years. Genotypic and phenotypic
coefficients of variations were estimated by the formula
suggested by Burton (1952) for each character. Broad
sense heritability was also calculated according to the
formula suggested by Johnson et al. (1955) for each
character. Estimates of appropriate variance components
were substituted for the parameters to predict the expec-
-ted genetic gain as suggested by Lush (1949). The
expected genetic gain was calculated at 5% selection
intensity for each character.
The mean sum of squares for all the characters was
significant (P>0.01) which indicated that there was wide
variability among progenies for different characters (Table
2). Growth performance of different progenies was
recorded at the age of 4 years (Table 3). Tree height
ranged from 3.58 to 4.53 m. Maximum tree height (4.53
m) was observed in progeny 12 followed by progenies 8
(4.46 m) and 7 and 9 (4.39 m). Progeny number 6 (12.83
cm) showed maximum DBH, while minimum DBH was
recorded in progeny 16. The maximum number of
branches were recorded in progeny number 9 (51.38)
followed by progenies 10 (49.92) and 14 (49.63). The
inter-nodal length varied from 7.20 cm (progeny 10) to
17.94 cm (progeny 4). Mean annual increments (MAI) in
height, DBH, number of branches and intermodal length
also varied according to the growth variability of these
characters between 16 progenies. The variations
between progenies might have arisen since such
populations grew over a range of climatic and edaphic

Table 1. Geographical detail of various progenies

Progeny no. Place of collection Latiitude Longitude
1 Basti Bhag Singh Wala, Ferozepur 30º90' N 74º69'E
2 Dashmesh School, Faridkot, 30º68' N 74º77'E
3 Village Kothe Ber, Near Kot Kapura, Faridkot 30º58' N 74º81'E
4 Govt. Girls School, Jhabelwali, Muktasar 30º51' N 74º60'E
5 Near Water Tank, Sukhwan, Muktasar 30º39' N 74º63'E
6 Butter Sirin, Gidherbaha, Muktasar 30º20' N 74º66'E
7 Pakho Kalan, Sangrur 30º22' N 74º42'E
8 IBP Petrol Pump, Maholi Kalan, Barnala 30º62' N 75º76'E
9 Rewari 28 o40' N 76 o50'E
10 Narwana, Jind 29 o48' N 76 o23'E
11 Thana, Kaithal 29°48' N 78°23'E
12 Ghurkara, Ambala 30°21' N 76°52'E
13 Kurukshetra, Kurukshetra 29°58' N 76°56'E
14 NDRI, Karnal, Karnal 29°42' N 77°02'E
15 Madhuban, Karnal, Karnal 29 o50’ N 77 o45'E
16 Rohtak 28°54' N 76°38'E

Table 2. Analysis of variance for different characters

Mean sum of squares
TH (m) DBH (cm) NB IL (cm) MAI of MAI of MAI of NB MAI of
TH (m) DBH (cm) IL (cm)
Replicates 0.0081 0.0658 21.2995 2.4980 0.0030 0.0034 1.1761 0.3704
Progenies 0.3450** 9.5058** 331.7448** 35.0513** 0.0258** 0.5935** 20.7031** 1.9361**
Error 0.0229 0.2303 9.1686 1.4405 0.0039 0.0151 0.5979 0.1617
TH: Tree height; DBH: Diameter at breast height; NB: Number of branches; IL: Internodal length; MAI: Mean annual increments;
**(P<0.01)

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 Garg & Kaushik
conditions and must have experienced varying pressures
of natural selection. The study of morphological
characteristics of natural populations is often considered
to be a useful step in the study of natural variability.
Progenies having high growth might be useful for further
improvement programmes as it relates to oil
biosynthesis in seeds and fodder biomass yield. The
performance of a provenance depends partly on the site
and seed-source, confirming the results of Chadhar
(1994). The present findings showed significant variability
in different biometric attributes as earlier documented in
this tree species (Kaushik et al., 2007; Kumar, 2012,
2014; Kumar and Kaushik, 2015).
Among different tree morphological traits under study in
different progenies, the estimates of genotypic coeffici-
-ents of variation (GCV) were less as compared to the
phenotypic coefficients of variation (PCV) for all the
characters examined (Table 4). The highest genotypic
coefficient of variation (24.49%) was recorded for the
number of branches and its mean annual increment
(24.49%) followed by intermodal length (24.25%). The
PCV and GCV were moderate for tree height and high for
DBH, number of branches and inter-nodal length. The
results of the study clearly indicated that for a majority of
traits there is much scope for selection for improvement
in Pongamia. Variations among progenies are commonly
used as an estimate of total genetic variation and to
calculate the degree of genetic control for a particular
trait. In the present study, for all traits the GCV was found
to be of a lower magnitude than the PCV. This indicated
that these traits are influenced by local environmental

Table 3. Mean performance of different progenies four years after planting

Progenies TH (m) DBH (cm) NB IL (cm) MAI of MAI of MAI of NB MAI of
TH (m) DBH (cm) IL (cm)
1 3.85 8.01 26.00 14.85 0.97 2.00 6.50 3.71
2 3.98 9.16 37.25 10.73 1.00 2.29 9.31 2.69
3 4.19 9.21 42.38 9.91 1.10 2.30 10.57 2.48
4 3.85 7.05 21.56 17.94 0.96 1.76 5.64 4.49
5 4.29 8.63 35.38 12.15 1.07 2.16 8.97 3.04
6 4.28 12.83 46.25 9.51 1.13 3.21 11.56 2.38
7 4.39 8.56 28.50 15.42 1.10 2.14 6.88 3.86
8 4.46 10.48 36.83 12.26 1.12 2.62 9.21 3.07
9 4.39 10.88 51.38 8.60 1.10 2.72 12.85 2.15
10 3.58 10.90 49.92 7.20 0.89 2.73 12.48 2.30
11 4.24 8.59 37.21 11.51 1.06 2.15 9.16 2.88
12 4.53 8.79 28.13 16.23 1.13 2.22 6.86 4.06
13 3.64 8.53 29.92 12.23 0.91 2.13 7.48 3.06
14 4.31 10.49 49.63 8.70 1.08 2.63 12.41 2.17
15 4.00 10.32 35.00 11.55 1.00 2.59 8.75 2.89
16 3.87 7.01 31.42 12.45 0.97 1.75 7.86 3.12
General Mean 4.11 9.34 36.67 11.95 1.04 2.34 9.16 3.02
CD (P<0.05) 0.22 0.68 4.31 1.71 0.09 0.17 1.10 0.57
TH: Tree height; DBH: Diameter at breast height; NB: Number of branches; IL: Internodal length; MAI: Mean annual increments

Table 4. Estimates of genetic variability for tree morphological characters

Characters Coefficient of variation (%) Heritability (%) Genetic advance as Range
Phenotypic Genotypic percentage of mean
TH (m) 7.82 6.90 77.82 12.53 3.58-4.53
DBH (cm) 17.10 16.30 90.96 32.03 7.01-12.83
NB 25.84 24.49 89.79 47.80 21.56-51.38
IL (cm) 26.25 24.25 85.37 46.16 7.20-17.94
MAI of TH (m) 9.27 7.08 58.42 11.15 0.89-1.13
MAI of DBH (cm) 17.09 16.26 90.56 31.88 1.75-3.21
MAI of NB 25.90 24.49 89.37 47.69 5.64-12.85
MAI of IL (cm) 25.75 22.05 73.29 38.88 2.15-4.49
TH: Tree height; DBH: Diameter at breast height; NB: Number of branches; IL: Internodal length; MAI: Mean annual increments

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 Genetic parameters estimates in Pongamia pinnata
factors as reported in Melia azedarach (Meena et al.,
2014). Among the different progenies, the estimates of
GCV were less compared to the PCV for all the characters
indicating the influence of non-additive gene action. GCV
which indicates the range and magnitude of genetic
variability existing between the traits was in the vicinity of
the PCV for most of the characters studied.
GCV alone is no indication of the magnitude of heritable
variation. Partitioning of total phenotypic variance (σ 2p)
of each trait into heritable (σ 2g) and non-heritable (σ 2e)
components help determine the proportion of heritable
variation that is exploitable for selection of superior
individuals. For this purpose estimates of heritability
were necessary. In the present study, high heritability
estimates were recorded for tree height, DBH, number
of branches and intermodal distance and their mean
annual increments with highest estimates for DBH (90.96
%) followed by the number of branches (89.79%).
Heritability has an important place in tree improvement
programmes as it provides the index of the relative
strength of heredity versus environment (Dorman, 1976).
Gains from tree improvement programmes depend on
the type and extent of genetic variability. The best gains
are for the characteristics that are strongly under genetic
control with a wide range of variability (Zobel, 1971). High
magnitude of heritability for all the characters also
envisaged that environment had comparatively low
influence for the characters under study. The genetic gain
was highest for the number of branches (47.80%)
followed by intermodal distance (46.16%). Johnson et
al. (1955) reported that heritability estimates along with
expected genetic gain are more useful and realistic than
the heritability alone in predicting the resultant effect for
best genotypes. High heritability coupled with moderately
high genetic advance suggested the presence of an
additive gene effect for these characters. Thus, individual
plant selection for these characters would be satisfactory.
High heritability accompanied by moderate genetic
advance for several growth parameters were reported
earlier in Acacia catechu (Gupta et al., 2012), Jatropha
curcas (Kumar et al., 2012) and Pongamia pinnata (Ali
et al., 2009).
The number of branches showed positive and highly
significant correlations with the DBH and mean annual
increments (MAI) of DBH and number of branches.
Significant and positive correlation was observed
between tree height and DBH, MAI of tree height and MAI
of DBH. Negative correlation was recorded for inter nodal
length and DBH (Table 5). Correlation showed the extent
of association between characters, which might be the
criteria for selection in improvement program (Jain, 1982).
Positive and significant correlations among seed traits
were observed earlier in Pongamia pinnata by Kumar
(2012, 2014), Kumar and Kaushik (2015) and in
Dalbergia sissoo by Devagiri et al. (2004).
Path coefficients analysis was used in the present study
for understanding the complex traits (Table 6). Mean
annual increment and tree height had highest direct effect
on the number of branches. Tree height and DBH exerted
the highest indirect positive effect through MAI of DBH.
Internodal length had the maximum indirect positive effect
through DBH. Tree height and mean annual increment
of DBH can be used as selection criteria for improving
the number of branches in this species. Similar results
on inter trait correlations in Dalbergia sissoo were
reported by Gera et al. (1999).

Table 5. Correlation coefficients among morphological characters

Characters TH DBH NB IL MAI of MAI of MAI of MAI of
TH DBH NB IL
TH 1
DBH 0.2951* 1
NB 0.1902 0.8229** 1
IL 0.03880 -0.7402 -0.9469 1
MAI of TH 0.9622** 0.4586** 0.2384 -0.0449** 1
MAI of DBH 0.2979* 1.0000** 0.8224** -0.7389 0.4610** 1
MAI of NB 0.1711 0.8186** 0.9999** -0.9475** 0.2198 0.8180** 1
MAI of IL -0.592 0.0360 0.1760 0.0830 0.8300** 0.2610* 0.6090** 1
TH: Tree height; DBH: Diameter at breast height; NB: Number of branches; IL: Internodal length; MAI: Mean annual increments;
*(P<0.05); **(P<0.01)

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 Garg & Kaushik

Table 6. Path coefficients showing direct and indirect effects of selected characters on the number of branches
Characters TH DBH IL MAI of TH MAI of DBH MAI of NB MAI of IL
TH 0.7281 -0.3072 -0.0225 -0.6617 0.3999 0.0628 -0.0092
DBH 0.2148 -1.0412 0.4292 -0.3154 1.3425 0.3004 -0.1075
IL 0.0282 0.7707 -0.5799 0.0309 -0.9919 -0.3477 0.1428
MAI of TH 0.7005 -0.4775 0.0260 -0.6877 0.6189 0.0807 -0.0226
MAI of DBH 0.2169 -1.0412 0.4285 -0.3170 1.3424 0.3002 -0.1073
MAI of NB 0.1246 -0.8523 0.5494 -0.1512 1.0981 0.3670 -0.1356
MAI of IL -0.0469 0.7870 -0.5820 0.1091 -1.0130 -0.3499 0.1422
TH: Tree height; DBH: Diameter at breast height; NB: Number of branches; IL: Internodal length; MAI: Mean annual increments

Significant variability was observed among progenies for
tree morphological traits in Pongamia pinnata. Progeny
number 9, 10 and 14 were found to be best based on
most of the characters. These progenies showed promise
in their further exploitation for plantation and selection for
improvement. Tree height and mean annual increment of
diameter at breast height can be used as the selection
criteria for improving the number of branches in this
species.
Acknowledgement
Authors are thankful to the Head, Department of Forestry
and Natural Resources, Punjab Agricultural University,
Ludhiana for providing logistic support for conducting the
study.
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