International Journal of Horticulture, 2025, Vol.15, No.4, 171-184 http://hortherbpublisher.com/index.php/ijh 178 A study focusing on the characterization of key physiological traits of medicinal Cannabisaimed to support precision breeding efforts to enhance yield and optimize cultivation practices. The research cultivated 121 Cannabis genotypes in a controlled environment, analyzed 13 plant parameters, and developed an equation to predict floral bud yield (Naim-Feil et al., 2021). The study found that plant height and stem diameter were positively correlated with yield, while maturation time showed no significant relationship with floral bud production (Figure 3). Additionally, the study identified several traits with high heritability, such as plant height and stem diameter, which can facilitate early selection without completing the full cultivation cycle, thus improving breeding efficiency. The research emphasized the importance of integrating physiological and phenological data into breeding programs, especially for medicinal Cannabis, to cultivate scientifically optimized, high-quality varieties for commercial applications. Figure 3 Principle component analysis (PCA) for 121 Cannabis lines. A Demonstrates the relationship between 13 physiological traits. Colours indicate plants vernacular classifcation according to strain groups association (for example, “Purple Kush” or “LA Confdential” strains). Genotypes marked in red (or a variation of red colours) refect strains with blended THC/CBD ratio while all other colour classify genotypes containing THC and no CBD (cannabinoids profle was estimated by DNA markers). B Shows the associations between growth parameters, DTM and BDW. C Presents the relationship between traits with high breeding values (DTM, HI, BDW, PH, SD) (Adopted from Naim-Feil et al., 2021) Image caption: The figure reveals the associations between different traits, with two principal components explaining 57% of the phenotypic variation. The analysis shows that days to maturation (DTM) is distinct from other traits and does not exhibit significant correlations, while bud dry weight (BDW) is positively correlated with stem diameter growth rate and plant height. Additionally, the results indicate that genotype classification does not cluster based on vernacular names, suggesting that traditional naming is inconsistent with actual physiological traits. The figure demonstrates that genotype yield predictions can be based on traits like stem diameter and height, emphasizing the importance of phenotypic data in precision breeding (Adapted from Naim-Feil et al., 2021)
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