Twenty bean genotypes (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) were evaluated, in the county of Lages/SC, Brazil for the influence of three traits of agronomic importance on the genetic divergence in beans. This estimate was accomplished through the statistics of Mahalanobis and, for grouping the most similar genotypes, the method of Tocher. The experiment was performed with a randomized block design, with three replications and three sowing dates in both crop and out of season periods in the agricultural year of 1996/97. The analyzed agronomic traits were: number of days between emergency and flowering (EMFL), number of days between emergency and harvesting point (EMMC), weight of a thousand grains (PMG), and the yield of grains per unit of area. The results obtained allowed to identify possible genotypes to be used in driven crossings. The study of the twenty bean genotypes showed a high degree of genetic divergence and indicated the agronomic characters EMFL and PMG as larger contributions to the genetic divergence, indicating, that these two characters should be prioritized in programs of bean improvement.
Phaseolus vulgaris L.; D² and Tocher; morphological diversity
