Field Crops Research, 20 (1989) 251-259 251

Elsevier Science Publishers B.V., Amsterdam - - Printed in The Netherlands

Yield Stability of Induced-Early-Maturing Mutants

of Mungbean (Vigna radiata) and their Use in a
Multiple-Cropping System

ILYAS AHMAD MALIK, YOUSAF ALI, MOHAMMAD SALEEM and GHULAM RASUL
TAHIR
Mutation Breeding Division, Nuclear Institute for Agriculture and Biology, P.O. Box No. 128,
Faisalabad (Pakistan)
(Accepted 11 October 1988)

ABSTRACT

Malik, I.A., Ali, Y., Saleem, M. and Tahir, G.R., 1989. Yield stability of induced-early-maturing
mutants of mungbean ( Vigna radiata), and their use in a multiple-cropping system. Field
Crops Res., 20: 251-259.

The performance of seven mutants of mungbean along with parental types was studied at 41
different sites in three summer crop seasons from 1980 to 1982. The performance of mutants was
also studied in spring in the fallow period preceding cotton, and in early summer in the fallow
period between wheat harvest and rice/maize planting, to assess their suitability of growing as a
catch-crop in these fallows.
The mutants yielded significantly higher and matured 2-4 weeks earlier than parental types,
leaving sufficient time to sow the succeeding crops, The mutants were characteristically short-
statured, and superior to their parents with respect to number of pods per plant, seed weight,
harvest index and productivity per day, but similar in number of seeds per pod and seed protein
content.
The stability of yield was estimated through regression analysis. Significant genotypic differ-
ences were observed among mutants and varieties. Some mutants were widely adapted whereas
others performed better in favourable environments. The parental types tended to respond well
under poor environments.
Owing to their higher yield potential, early and uniform maturity, and wide adaptability, four
mutants were approved as commercial varieties in 1986. These mutants yield 30-50% higher than
the parents, mature in 55-70 days, and are suited to both summer and spring crop seasons. Of'
these four mutants, two can be grown in the fallow period between wheat harvest and rice/maize
planting. Because of their determinate plant type, non-shatteringpod and top fruit-bearing habit,
these mutants are also amenable to intercropping practices and mechanised harvesting operations.
The role of induced mutations for the improvement of mungbean is discussed.

INTRODUCTION

Mungbean (Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek) is an important short-duration

pulse crop of many Asian countries including Pakistan, and constitutes a sub-

0378-4290/89/$03.50 © 1989 Elsevier Science Publishers B.V.

252

stantial portion of protein in the cereal-based diet of a majority of the people.

It is regarded as a quality pulse for its rich protein seed and excellent digesti-
bility, and its sprouts are consumed as a common vegetable in many countries
(Rachie and Roberts, 1974; Chang, 1978; Morton et al., 1982). Mungbean is
particularly important in rainfed agriculture due to its low water requirements,
negligible inputs and ability to restore soil fertility through symbiotic nitrogen
fixation (Firth et al., 1973).
In Pakistan, mungbean is grown mainly in summer in the rainfed lands va-
cated after wheat/chickpea harvest, and partly in spring in the irrigated areas.
By virtue of its great flexibility in terms of adaptation to different sowing sea-
sons, it fits very well into a wide array of niches available in existing crop-
rotation practices, and its production can be increased substantially without
bringing any extra area under this crop. For example, an extra crop of mung-
bean can be obtained in the fallow period (May-June) between wheat harvest
and rice/maize planting or from fallow fields preceding cotton. This is possible
provided very-early-maturing (60 days) and high-yielding varieties become
available so that the crop can be harvested in time to leave a sufficient period
to prepare the fields for the succeeding crop. Native mungbean cultivars do not
fit in the above niches, largely due to their late maturity, and are usually af-
fected by monsoon rains during the pod-filling stage if sown after wheat har-
vest. Consequently, native cultivars were irradiated to induce early maturity,
higher harvest index and improved synchrony of maturity so that high-yielding
lines suitable for multiple cropping could be selected. This paper reports the
salient features of elite mutants/variants induced in the local cultivars, their
yielding ability and stability in varied environments, and their suitability to
fit into various crop rotations and intercropping practices.

MATERIALSAND METHODS

Dry dormant seeds of three local mungbean cultivars, 6601, Pak22 and RC71-
27, with 12% moisture contents were treated with 5-80 Krad exposures to
gamma rays in spring 1977. Immediately after treatment the seeds were sown
in the field along with untreated controls. From the M2 generation which was
grown the following summer, a large number of plants (mutants/variants)
with desired characteristics were selected. Further selections were made in the
M3 generation for earliness, uniform maturity, short plant stature, top fruit-
bearing habit and large number of pods per plant. In the M4 generation, 74
selections were subjected to micro-plot yield trials and seed protein analysis.
Selection was continued in the advanced generations (Ms-M6), and only su-
perior mutants were carried forward. Seven of these elite mutants were: (1)
13-1 derivative of cv. 6601 at 10 Krad; (2) 121-25 derivative of cv. RC71-27 at
20 Krad; (3) 131-37 derivative of cv. RC71-27 at 40 Krad; (4) 94-73 derivative
ofcv. Pak 22 at 20 Krad; (5) 131-98 derivative ofcv. Pak 22 at 20 Krad; (6)
 253

19-19 derivative of cv. Pak 22 at 40 Krad; and (7) 20-21 derivative of cv. Pak
22 at 40 Krad.
Performance of the above seven mutants plus three parents and two local
strains (RC71-17 and AUM233) was studied in trials conducted in summer
crop seasons at four locations in 1980, at 11 locations in 1981 and at 26 loca-
tions in 1982. Performance of the above entries was also studied in spring dur-
ing 1981-1983 in the fallow period preceding cotton crop, and of mutants 13-1
and 20-21 in the fallow period (May-June) between wheat harvest and rice/
maize planting during 1980-1983. These trials were conducted at widespread
locations in the country starting from Peshawar valley in the North-West
Frontier Province extending through Punjab Province down to the Sind Prov-
ince. A randomized complete-block design with 4 replications was used. Plots
consisted of 6 rows each 4 m long and 30 cm apart with plants spaced at 10 cm
within each row. Non-experimental material was planted around the plots to
avoid a border effect. Fertilizer (N: P : K at 20: 60:60 kg/ha) was incorporated
in the soil at the time of sowing. The spring and summer plantings were done
during the l s t / 2 n d week of March and July respectively, whereas the post-
wheat planting was done during the last week of April/lst week of May each
year. Yield and other important plant characters were recorded from each plot
separately.
Harvest index was calculated as [grain yield-biological yield] X 100. Pro-
ductivity per day was calculated by dividing grain yield/ha by number of days
from sowing to harvesting. The N content of seed was determined by the Kjel-
dahl method and percent protein calculated as N X 6.25, on an air-dry basis.
To study the response of mutants and parents across different seasons, the
yield data of 3 years of trials in both summer and spring seasons was subjected
to combined analysis of variance followed by Duncan's Multiple Range Test
in a 2-factor factorial fashion. The yield data from trials conducted at 26 lo-
cations during summer 1982 were used to estimate the stability parameters of
each mutant and variety according to the regression model suggested by Eber-
hart and Russell (1966). One stability parameter was estimated as the linear
regression coefficient (b) of an entry mean on the environmental index. The
other stability parameter was deviation from regression (S~) for each entry.
Eberhart and Russell defined a stable genotype as one which has a unit regres-
sion coefficient (b = 1.0) and a very small deviation from regression (S~ = 0).

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Important plant characters of elite mutants and their yield performance in

different crop seasons

The data regarding important plant characters of the seven mutants and
five varieties (including parental types) and their yield performance in trials
conducted in summer/spring during the years 1980-1982 are presented in Ta-
254

bles 1 and 2, respectively. From the results (Table 1) it is evident that the
selected mutants flowered earlier than the parental types by a margin of 5-14
days, and matured earlier by a margin of 13-27 days. There was a strong cor-
relation (r--0.844) between early flowering and early maturity. Mutants 13-
1, 20-21 and 19-19 were the earliest flowering {33-35 days) and maturing (62-
66 days ) group. The maturity duration (number of days from flowering to over
90% pod maturity) in the mutants was also shortened by about 10 days, which
was obviously due to their determinate growth habit. Flowering and pod ma-
turity in the parent varieties were in fact never complete; after anthesis growth
of vegetative and reproductive organs continued simultaneously, resulting in
uneven pod maturity and prolonged maturity duration. Mutants were char-
acteristically short-statured with erect and compact growth habit. The de-
crease in plant height was largely due to a reduction in internode length, which
enabled the mutants to resist lodging even in conditions most favourable to
growth. The mutants were also superior to their parental types in number of
pods per plant, 1000-seed weight, harvest index and per-day productivity. The
mutants were, however, similar to their parents in traits such as pod length,
number of seeds per pod, seed-coat colour and surface, and seed protein con-
tents. The high harvest index of the mutants indicates their improved phys-
iological efficiency in partitioning a major portion of photosynthates towards
grain formation. The per-day productivity of the mutants was also markedly
higher (95-184%) than that of their respective parents. The per-day produc-

TABLE1

Comparison of important plant characteristics of mung bean mutants and varieties (3 years' average of
summer crops, 1980-1982)

Mutant/ Days to Height No. of Seeds/ 1000-seed Harvest Seed Productivity/

variety (cm) pods pod weight index protein day
Flower Mature (g) contents (kg/ha)
(%)
Mut.121-25 39 70 65.1 33.1 12.7 31.5 26.8 23.6 14.9
Mut.131-37 40 74 71.3 29.2 13.0 31.3 23.3 23.3 12.5
Mut.19-19 35 66 61.9 35.6 12.4 30.0 30.0 23.3 15.9
Mut.20-21 35 64 59.5 31.2 12.4 29.5 33.9 22.8 14.0
Mut.94-73 38 71 68.1 29.7 12.4 29.8 22.5 23.7 13.2
Mut.131-98 41 75 68.4 30.9 12.7 29.6 21.3 22.7 11.9
Mut.13-1 33 62 65.1 29.3 12.7 32.3 31.2 23.5 15.9
Var.RCT1-27 47 86 77.5 26.4 12.9 29.3 14.4 22.7 7.2
Var.Pak22 46 88 76.9 23.5 12.9 29.7 13.2 22.9 6.1
Var.6601 47 89 83.6 21.6 12.8 29.3 16.1 22.7 5.6
(standard)
Var.RC71-17 46 87 80.5 24.6 13.0 29.7 15.5 23.0 7.0
Var.AUM233 49 96 88.4 23.2 12.7 29.9 8.1 22.4 4.5
 255

TABLE 2

Yield performance of mungbean mutants and varieties across seasons/years

Mutant/ Summer crop Springcrop Mean yield Mean crop

variety (kg/ha) duration (days)

1980 1981 1982 1981 1982 1983 Summer Spring

Mut.121-25 1008 1484 1699 1205 1535 1486 1402.8 a 70 68
Mut.19-19 919 1336 1651 1071 1409 1391 1296.2 b 66 67
Mut.131-37 896 1377 1539 1064 1487 1379 1290.3 b 74 71
Mut.20-21 1023 1256 1509 1130 1300 1400 1269.7 b 64 66
Mut.131-98 906 1351 1440 1069 1302 1389 1242.8bc 75 73
Mut.13-1 828 1195 1456 1193 1248 1358 1213.0 cd 62 63
Mut.94-73 922 1171 1424 1052 1277 1323 1194.8 d 71 70
Var.Pak.22 743 1020 1223 931 1218 1340 1079.2 e 88 81
Var.RC71-27 739 1103 1232 875 1195 1268 1068.7 e 86 82
Var.6601 748 997 1160 955 1159 1335 1059.0 e 89 83
(standard)
Var.RC71-17 710 1091 1224 819 1062 1256 1027.0 e 87 82
V a r . A u m 233 562 896 1000 462 1024 1148 848.7 f 96 90
Mean yield 833.7 f 1189.8 d 1379.8 a 985.5 e 1268 c 1339.4 b
(kg/ha)

Means sharing same letter(s) are not significantly different at 5% level according to DMR test.

Analysis of variance table

Source of variation d.f. Mean squares F. ratio

Replicates 3 10114.57 2.36 ....

Genotypes 11 287295.08 67.14 **
Seasons 5 1142113.78 266.91"*
Genotype × Season 5 11908.55 2.78""
Error 213 4279.05 --

tivity per unit area is important to profitable farming, particularly in the areas
where land-holdings are generally very small.
Mutants had significantly higher yields than did the parents and local stan-
dard in all 3 years of trials conducted in both summer and spring crop seasons
(Table 2 ). The variation due to main effects genotypes and seasons, as well as
of lst-order interaction (genotype × season), was highly significant. The av-
erage yield increments in the mutants in summer were from 21 to 44% over
the standard 6601. Mutants 121-25, 19-19, 131-37 and 20-21 were the highest-
yielding. Mutants also maintained their superiority over parents in spring crop
trials. Mutants 121-25, 13-1, 19-19, 20-21 on an average yielded 10-22% higher
and matured from 10 to 16 days earlier than the standard 6601, leaving suffi-
cient time to prepare the land for cotton planting. When grown in the fallow
period between wheat harvest and rice/maize planting, mutants 13-1 and 20-
21 took an average 56 and 58 days, respectively, to mature and yielded 41%
256

and 50% higher than their respective parents. Their very early maturity, cou-
pled with higher yield during this period, could be ascribed to most-favourable
conditions for growth and development. The reduction in crop duration of 18
days provided ample time to prepare the fields for rice or maize planting.

Yield stability of mutants/parents

Despite the high sensitivity of mungbean genotypes to varied environmental

conditions, little information is available on the yield stability of cultivars
(Chowdhury and Haque, 1977; Ahn et al., 1985). The mutants under study
outyielded their parents and other entries tested in the trials in all three crop
seasons, and it was considered important to compare their stability of perform-
ance when grown across 26 contrasting sites covering three provinces, namely
North West Frontier, Punjab, and Sind of Pakistan.
The mean yield of all the mutants/varieties at each site was used as an es-
timate of site mean yield. The site mean yields ranged from 781 to 1881 kg/ha.
Soil structure and texture, fertility and rainfall might have contributed to-
wards this variation. Unpredictable environmental factors such as tempera-
ture and rainfall, even at a single location, may contribute to geno-
type X environment interactions over years. This is evident from the results of
yield trials conducted at NIAB in spring over a period of 3 years (Table 2).
Testing of genotypes over different locations differing in unpredictable envi-
ronmental variation is a suitable approach for selecting stable genotypes
(Eberhart and Russell, 1966; Arain and Siddiqui, 1977; Adegoke and Frey,
1987).
Analysis of variance for stability parameters was carried out and mean
squares are given in Table 3. The mean square for genotypes was highly sig-

TABLE 3

Analysis of variance of yield data combined over all environments (sites), summer 1982 for sta-
bility parameters

Source d.f. MS F-ratio

Genotypes 11 0.580300 70.28**

Environments (linear) 1 11.757300 1423.92"*
Genotypes X Environments (linear) 11 0.017500 2.12"
Pooled deviations 288 0.008257
Total 311

*,** Significant at 5 % and 1% levels of probability respectively.

 257

nificant, showing t h a t significant genetic variability existed a m o n g m u t a n t s /

varieties. T h e s u m of squares due to e n v i r o n m e n t s a n d geno-
type × e n v i r o n m e n t s was p a r t i t i o n e d into e n v i r o n m e n t s ( l i n e a r ) , geno-
t y p e s × e n v i r o n m e n t (linear) a n d deviations f r o m t h e regression model. T h e
m e a n square for e n v i r o n m e n t s (linear) was highly significant c o n f i r m i n g t h a t
t h e r e were wide differences b e t w e e n sites. T h e m e a n square a t t r i b u t e d to gen-
o t y p e s X e n v i r o n m e n t s was also significant, i n d i c a t i n g t h a t m u t a n t s / v a r i e t i e s
p e r f o r m e d d i f f e r e n t l y w h e n t e s t e d o v e r a range of sites.
T h e stability p a r a m e t e r s a n d m e a n yields over 26 locations of m u n g b e a n
m u t a n t s / v a r i e t i e s are p r e s e n t e d in T a b l e 4. T h e linear regression coefficient
(b) a n d t h e d e v i a t i o n f r o m t h e regression (S~) values for d i f f e r e n t m u t a n t s /
varieties revealed a wide v a r i a t i o n in p e r f o r m a n c e across e n v i r o n m e n t s . T h e
m u t a n t s 19-19, 20-21 a n d 13-1 were i n t e r e s t i n g since t h e y were relatively sta-
ble in p e r f o r m a n c e w h e n j u d g e d b y the stability p a r a m e t e r s . T h e y h a d h i g h e r
m e a n yield, b value close to t h e u n i t y a n d S~ n o t significantly d i f f e r e n t f r o m
zero. T h e s e m u t a n t s also gave a b o v e - a v e r a g e yields over a wide e n v i r o n m e n t a l
array, t h u s i n d i c a t i n g t h e i r wide a d a p t a t i o n as c o m p a r e d to o t h e r entries. T h e
very-high-yielding m u t a n t s 121-25 a n d 131-37 were c h a r a c t e r i s e d b y b g r e a t e r
t h a n 1.0 a n d small S~ values, i n d i c a t i n g t h a t t h e y would r e s p o n d well to fa-
vourable e n v i r o n m e n t s . T h e value of b less t h a n 1.0 with significantly below-

TABLE4

Mean yields and estimates of stability parameters for yield of mungbean mutants/varieties over
26 locations during summer, 1982.

Mutant/variety Mean yield b S~

(kg/ha) ( X 1000)
Mut.121-25 1681.53 + 1.24+ 5.0
Mut.19-19 1635.42 + 0.99 3.8
Mut.131-37 1526.25 + 1.22+ 4.9
Mut.20-21 1494.86 + 1.00 4.3
Mut.13-1 1438.89 + 1.08 2.1
Mut.131-98 1428.89 + 1.14 7.7
Mut.94-73 1409.31 0.90 6.1
Var.RC71-27 1217.22- 0.91 8.3
Var.RC71-17 1214.31- 0.92 5.5
Var.Pak-22 1211.67- 0.90 4.5
Var.6601 (standard) 1153.47- 0.89 5.8
Var.AUM233 1000.14- 0.82- 16.2"*
Grand mean 1367.64 1.00 6.2
Standard deviation 207.50 0.13
+,-: Significantly higher ( + ) or lower ( - ) than the average for yields and than 1.0 for regression
coefficients at 5% level of significance.
**: Significantly different from 0.0 at 1% level of significance.
258

average yield observed in the parental types indicated that they would not be
as good under favourable conditions. The native cultivars have been grown for
centuries under marginal conditions of moisture stress and low fertility. These
conditions resulted in the natural selection of genotypes adapted to stresses of
varying kinds rather than for high yields (Swaminathan and Jain, 1975; Da-
hiya, 1978).
In mutants 121-25 and 131-37 the association of higher yield with higher
values of b may be ascribed to the stringent selection which had been practised
for yield and yield components in the early generations of the mutant popu-
lations (Arain and Siddiqui, 1977). There was a greater range in b values in
the m u t a n t group than in the parental group, which may obviously be due to
the induced mutations (Pacucci and Frey, 1972; Fatunla and Frey, 1974; Arain
and Siddiqui, 1977).
From the results discussed above it is evident that mutants not only had
higher seed yield and matured earlier than the parental types but also were
better adapted to varied environmental conditions. Because of their determi-
nate erect habit, synchrony in pod maturity, non-shattering pod and top fruit-
bearing habit, the mutants are amenable to mechanised harvesting and thresh-
ing operations. The insensitivity to photoperiod and early-maturity character-
istics of the mutants also make them more suitable for intercropping with a
number of crops such as sugarcane, maize, sorghum, vegetables and fruit. Of
these seven mutants, four were approved as commercial varieties by the Punjab
Seed Council in 1986 and released for general cultivation under the following
names: NIAB Mung 121-25 and NIAB Mung 19-19, recommended for culti-
vation in both spring and summer crop seasons; and NIAB Mung 13-1 and
NIAB Mung 20-21, recommended for growing as a catch crop in the fallow
period between wheat harvest and rice/maize planting.
The introduction of these new m u t a n t varieties has resulted in a 26% in-
crease in the area under mungbean and stabilised its declining production.
Cultivation of mutants as a catch-crop has also enabled the farmers to derive
additional income from the same piece of land, as well as improved fertility of
their fields to benefit the succeeding crop (Malik et al., 1986).
Some of these mutants are being used in the cross-breeding programme to
incorporate their characters of early and uniform maturity, non-shattering pod,
and tolerance to mungbean yellow mosaic virus into exotic large-seeded vari-
eties of mungbean.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Thanks are due to Dr. S.H. Mujtaba Naqvi, Director, Nuclear Institute for
Agriculture and Biology, Faisalabad, for providing experimental facilities and
guidance during the course of this work. Cooperation from the Department of
 259

A g r i c u l t u r e e x t e n s i o n in c o n d u c t i n g t r i a l s a t d i f f e r e n t l o c a t i o n s is also g r a t e -
fully a c k n o w l e d g e d .

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