Genetic Variability, Heritability, Correlation and Path Coefficient Analysis of Growth and Yield Traits of Cowpea Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp Parental Genotypes and their F1 Crosses

Cowpea Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walpers, also known as black-eyed pea or southern pea, is a self-pollinating crop belonging to the family Fabaceae. It is a popular legume grown for multiple utility purposes. Three cowpea genotypes were grown in accordance with a completely randomized design, replicated four times. The F1 populations were generated by crossing B138 with speckled grey Lecheng (SGL) and or ER7, which were crossed in all possible combinations to produce reciprocal crosses. Seventeen successful pods were generated from the 124 crosses, giving 13.7% success rate. There were two SGL X B138, two B138 X SGL, four B138 X ER7 and nine ER7 X B138 progenies generated from the crosses. These were then planted with their parents for evaluation of genetic variability, heritability, correlation, and path coefficient analysis of growth, yield, and yield-related attributes. High heritability, along high genetic advance, was reported for pod length, days to flowering, 100-seed weight, and seed yield per plot, indicating that these traits were governed by additive gene effects and that selection for these attributes would be beneficial. The phenotypic coefficient of variation (PCV) was consistently greater than the equivalent genotypic coefficient of variation (GCV), indicating that environmental influences have a role in the characteristic under study. The highest GCVs were recorded for number of leaves (23.82), seed yield per plant (32.51), leaf area (38.28), plant height (54.53) and seed yield per plot (80.17). The highest PCV was found in for number of pods per plant (23.96), seed yield per plant (32.72), leaf area (55.88), number of leaves (62.41), plant height (79.88), and seed yield per plot (80.17). The findings indicate that these traits could be utilized favorably to successfully identify and select preferred genotypes.