Assessment of the agronomic performance of Malayan Yellow Dwarf × Vanuatu Tall coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) hybrid variety tolerant to lethal yellowing disease of Ghana in Côte d’Ivoire

Journal of Research in Biology ISSN No: Print: 2231 –6280; Online: 2231- 6299 An International Scientific Research Journal Original Research Assessment of the agronomic performance of Malayan Yellow Dwarf × Vanuatu Tall coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) hybrid variety tolerant to lethal yellowing disease of Ghana in Côte d’Ivoire. Journal of Research in Biology Authors: ABSTRACT: Zadjéhi Eric-Blanchard KOFFI 1,2* , Jean Louis This article aims to study the agronomic performance of 18 hybrid progenies 2 Konan KONAN , Raoul of coconut MYD x VTT and their parents VTT in Côte d'Ivoire. The evaluation was 1 Sylvère SIE , Didier-Martial focused on the number of bunches per year (Nbb), the number of fruits per year 1,2 Saraka YAO , Yoboué (NBFR), copra produced per tree per year (Cop / tree / year) and per hectare per year 1,2 KOFFI ,Ysidor N’guessan 2,3 KONAN , Emmanuel (Cop / hectare / year). It appears from this work that the hybrids MYD x VTT produces 2 Auguste ISSALI , Thierry 9 to 11 bunches and 76 to 121 fruits, per year with the weight of 12.54 to 19.82 kg of 2 Lékadou Tacra et Kouassi copra per tree and 2.01 and 3.17t of copra per hectare. These values are statistically + 2 ALLOU . equal to those of PB121 used as a control in the study. Progenies of d 5 , d 6 , d 8 , d 11, + d 12, d 15 and d 18 give the best yields and similar to the control PB121 . VTT Parent Institution: produce an average of 11 bunches 96 fruits, and 11.62 kg of copra per tree and 1.66 t 1. Laboratoire de Biologie et of copra per hectare per year. Parent G 1, G 4, G 6, G 7, G 12, G 15 and G 16 have the best d’Amélioration des yield. Heterosis effects were observed for copra tree (42.08%) and copra per hectare Productions végétales, UFR Sciences de la Nature, (50.04%). Parents that have better yields with best progenies can be selected for the Université Nangui seed production of MYD x VTT (tolerant and good yield). MYD x VTT hybrid results are Abrogoua, 02 BP 801 advised to Ivorian and Ghanaian farmers to prevent expansion of this disease. Abidjan 02, Côte d'Ivoire. 2. Centre National de Keywords: Recherche Agronomique, Hybrid coconut MYD x VTT, tolerant, productivity. Station de recherche Marc Delorme, 07 BP 13 Abidjan Abbreviations: 07, Côte d'Ivoire. Nbb: Number of bunches per year, NBFR: Number of fruits per year, Cop/ 3. Laboratoire de biochimie tree / year: copra produced per tree per year, Cop / hectare / year: copra produced per et science des aliments, hectare per year., MYD: Malayan Yellow Dwarf, VTT: Vanuatu Tall, WAT: West Université Félix Houphouet African Tall MYD x VTT : Malayan Yellow Dwarf cross Vanuatu Tall, MYD Boigny, Abidjan, Côte x WAT+ : Malayan Yellow Dwarf cross improved West African Tall, Bunch. d’Ivoire, 22 BP 582 Abidjan 22. Corresponding author: Article Citation: Koffi Eric Blanchard Zadjéhi Eric-Blanchard KOFFI, Jean Louis Konan KONAN, Raoul Sylvère SIE, Didier- Zadjéhi. Martial Saraka YAO, Yoboué KOFFI, Ysidor N’guessan KONAN, Emmanuel Auguste ISSALI, Thierry Lékadou Tacra, et Kouassi ALLOU. Assessment of the agronomic performance of Malayan Yellow Dwarf × Vanuatu Tall coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) hybrid variety tolerant to lethal yellowing disease of Ghana Email Id: in Côte d’Ivoire. Journal of Research in Biology (2014) 4(6): 1427-1440 Dates: Web Address: Received: 14 Mar 2014 Accepted: 04 Jul 2014 Published: 22 Aug 2014 http://jresearchbiology.com/ documents/RA0448.pdf This article is governed by the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/ licenses/by/2.0), which gives permission for unrestricted use, non-commercial, distribution and reproduction in all medium, provided the original work is properly cited. 1427-1440| JRB | 2014 | Vol 4 | No 6 Journal of Research in Biology An International Scientific Research Journal www.jresearchbiology.com

Zadjéhi et al., 2014 INTRODUCTION The objective of this paper is to evaluate the Coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) is the most widely agronomic performance of MYD x VTT hybrid progeny cultivated oilseed plant in the coastal areas of tropics. planted in Côte d'Ivoire. This study will provide the best The global area of coconut plantation is 12.05 million MYD x VTT progeny with dual ability of tolerance and hectares (ha), of which approximately 88% are in Asia good productivity offer for growers. VTT parent may and Pacific and 5.27% in Africa (AMRIZAL, 2003). provide the best progeny is also revealed by this study, Besides its interest for millions of smallholders, this tree for to be use in the seed production. is of a global economic importance, is a source of fat and many industrial products (Bourdeix et al., 2005a). MATERIALS AND METHODS In Côte d'Ivoire, the coconut is the main cash Study site and plant material crop on the coast where the vast majority of coconut The test PBGC43 (Port-Bouet Genetics Coconut trees are located. The surfaces used in this part of the No. 43) is located on the plot 034 of Marc Delorme Ivory Coast represent about 80% of the area of the research station (5°14' and 5°15' north latitude and 3°54' Ivorian coconut grove covering 50,000 ha (Konan, 2002 and 3°55' W) in Abidjan in southern Côte d'Ivoire. The and Assa et al., 2006) and its culture has more than climate of the southern region of Côte d'Ivoire has four 12,000 families (Bourdeix Konan, 2005). However, the seasons, two rainy (April-July and October-November) economic challenge posed by coconut is compromised and two dry (December-March and August-September). by several diseases, including the lethal yellowing which The average temperature varies between 24.50°C and is the origin of the devastation of thousands of acres of 27.73°C. The total insolation reached 2,238.3 hours per coconut groves in the world (Van Der Vossen and year with an average moisture content of 86.02%. Chipungahelo, 2007) including Jamaica, Mexico, Rainfall is characterized by an average annual Tanzania, Mozambique, Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire; precipitation of 1673.99 mm and the floor of Marc phytoplasmas are responsible for this disease (Rohde Delorme station consists of tertiary sands. et al., 1993). It is manifested by the fruit drop, yellowing The plant material consists of 18 hybrid and fall of all the leaves. On affected by this disease, progenies (coded d 1 to d 18) from crosses between coconut trees die within months, leaving a field bare Malayan Yellow Dwarf (MYD) and Vanuatu Tall trunks. This is a threat to the global area of coconut (VTT). These crosses involved 18 male brood stock VTT plantations and therefore its production. There is no (coded G 1 to G 18) and a female parent MYD using the chemical control and / or potential mechanics for its technique of assisted pollination (Wuidart and Rognon, cure. The only possible solution to the fight against this 1981). Choosing brood stock VTT was conducted disease is genetic method of selection or creating visually on the general morphology shaft. VTT were resistant varieties (Oropeza et al., 2005). Behavioral tests planted in 1988 on plot 022. Their progeny produced on conducted in Ghana have identified sources of varietal the seed field plot 033 of Marc Delorme Station, were tolerance which MYD x VTT hybrid (Dery et al., 2005. planted in 1998. Bonnot et al., 2009). However, agronomic characteristics Experimental design of these hybrid offsprings have never been studied. In MYD x VTT Seedlings were planted following a addition, the disease is discovered in Côte d'Ivoire since randomized complete block design at a density of 160 2012 and is similar to that of Ghana (Konan et al., 2013). trees per ha with six repetitions (Fig 1). In each block, the repetition by progeny varied from 3 to 10 coconuts 1428 Journal of Research in Biology (2014) 4(6): 1427-1440