VARIABILITY OF YIELD AND YIELD COMPONENTS IN “EGUSI” MELON

Egusi melon (Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Mansf.) is an important food crop in Nigeria and other African countries. In a study carried out to estimate the components of variation in ‘egusi’ melon populations indicated high proportion of genetic variation in the yield attributes measured. Estimates of phenotypic coefficient of variation ranged between 3.6-52%, while genotypic coefficient of variation ranged between 3.21-51% for seed yield plant^-1, number of fruits plant^-1 and fruit yield plant^-1. Heritability estimate was high in the yield attributes. On seed yield plant^-1, heritability ranged between 83-98%. Estimate of expected genetic advance in seed yield plant^-1 ranged between 25.90-48.40%. Improvement could be made in seed yield through selection.