Abstract: Hancornia speciosa Gomes is a fruit tree native to Brazil with potential
for use in cropping systems. The objective of this study was to characterize
accessions of a germplasm collection by evaluating agronomic traits. The
collection was planted in 2005, in an experiment with 57 progenies and four
replications, totaling 192 individual accessions from 29 natural subpopulations
of four botanical varieties, from the Brazilian Cerrado. The components
of variance were estimated using the restricted maximum likelihood (REML)
procedure. Heritability coefficients show the potential of the collection as
base population for selection programs. The trait number of fruits per plant
presented the highest estimated selection gain. The accessions of H. speciosa
var. cuyabensis are the ones with the greatest potential for selection based on
plant size and productivity. Progenies with greater development in the juvenile
phase are potentially more productive in the adult phase, allowing the early
selection of superior genotypes.
ARTICLE – Agronomic evaluation of a Hancornia speciosa Gomes germplasm collection from the Brazilian Cerrado
