ASSEMBLAGE OF ROSELE( Hibiscus sabdariffa L) LAND RACES IN NIGER STATE NORTH CENTRAL NIGERIA

Abstract

Roselle (Hibiscussabdariffa L.) landraces from Niger State, North Central Nigeria,were collected from all the major roselle producing areas of the state. The survey covered twenty six (26) villages in fifteen (15) Local Government Areas (LGAs). The landraces were collected from the three agricultural zones (i.e. Zone A, B and C). Forty-two (42) Farmers were interviewed and twenty-six (26) accessions were collected. The number (percentage) of landraces collected from the areas visited included: Wushishi 2(7.4%) Paiko 2(7.4%) Bosso 4(14.8%) Mokwa 3(11.1%) and Rafi 3(11.1%).The highest number of landraces collected was from Bosso 4 (14.8%); this was followed by Rafi and Lavun LGAs, with 3 (11.1%) landraces each. Findings from this study suggest that these Local Government Areas might be the secondary centre of diversity of the crop in Niger State. It was also clear that 57.1 % of the farmers interviewed have been growing this plant for over ten years whereas, only 14.3 % of the farmers have been cultivating the plants for less than five years. There was variation among the land races collected in terms of their calyces colours; the respective percentage of landraces with red or deep red calyces and green calyces are 64.3 % and 35.7 %. Farmers’ interests tend to influence the preference of the different roselle types; where some prefer the leafy vegetable, some other prefer the calyces. The range of values of the seed diameters is between 3.3 and 3.7. This study therefore suggested that Niger State of Nigeria is endowed with numerous landraces of Roselle, and thus could serve as secondary centre of origin of the crop. It is therefore recommended that, morphological evaluation of these landraces should be done, to reveal their acclaimed heterogeneity