Diversity in Aneuploids of Urginea Indica Kunth. Hyacinthaceae

Urginea indica is a morphologically variable species and differs both in vegetative and reproductive morphology. It is a perennial bulbous geophyte with fibrous roots. Five aneuploid accessions of U. indica were collected from different parts of Karnataka under standardized conditions and measured traits related to morphology, growth and phenology. The trait measurements revealed substantial phenotypic variations among the accessions. The morphometric studies were based on twenty parameters. The results obtained have shown that vegetative characters deviated significantly and also showed differences in ecological preferences. Differences were observed in reproductive characters. Variation in flowering and blooming time played a role in isolation of these accessions. The objective of the present study was to assess the diversity of U. indicia in these five accessions. These morphological variations would be worth in recognizing them as a separate sub specific taxon.