Characterization of genetic diversity of bird-of-paradise accessions

ABSTRACT This study aimed to characterize genetic diversity in the bird-of-paradise (Strelitzia reginae) collection at the Universidade do Estado de Mato Grosso Carlos Alberto Reyes Maldonado (UNEMAT) by estimating genetic divergence among genotypes based on agronomic characteristics. Seven agronomic characters were evaluated with average Euclidean distance. The UPGMA (Unweighted Pair Group Method with Arithmetic Mean) hierarchical clustering method was used between groups, as well as Tocher's optimization clustering method and principal component analysis (PCA), in order to classify the genotypes with maximum similarity between groups. Measures of genetic dissimilarity with average Euclidean distance verified the existence of genetic variability among accessions since the amplitude of dissimilarity values ranged from 1.09 to 36.97. Tocher's clustering method verified the formation of two distinct groups. UPGMA hierarchical clustering, based on the dissimilarity matrix, verified the formation of three groups with 30% cutoff point. Based on the main components analysis, we verified genetic divergence between the bird-of-paradise accessions in the UNEMAT Collection. The most promising combinations for future crosses in breeding programs comprise accessions 1, 11, and 23 and accession 1 as the most divergent among the accessions evaluated.