Vol. 2, Issue 2, Part A (2020)

Dioscorea bulbifera (aerial yam) is a valuable species of Western Himalayan region used for food and in traditional medicine. Assessment of the genetic variability of a plant species can contribute significantly to the crop conservation and improvement. Tubers of Dioscorea bulbifera were randomly collected from 6 different agro-ecological zones of Uttarakhand State for the study. Qualitative and quantitative morphological traits, and yield parameters were assessed to evaluate genetic diversity in Dioscorea bulbifera genotypes from different agro-ecological regions. Desirable agronomic traits such as bulbil yield, higher number of bulbils per plant, greater bulbil weight, higher number of branches on the main stem were used for selection of superior genotype. Genotype DG5 was the most productive with bulbil yield of 2213 g/plant. The least productive genotype was DG1 with bulbil yield of 291 g/plant. Varietal diversity was observed in Dioscorea bulbifera cultivated at different locations in the Western Himalaya.