Poonam Nawalkar and Sunil Kumar Verma
Abstract
North India is the largest producer of the annual leguminous fodder crop Trifolium alexandrinum, often known as Berseem or Egyptian clover. The Trifolium genus has 290 species, 25 of which are important to agriculture. Berseem breeding is quite limited because of its small genetic base. After 110 years, only Wardan is the sole genotype that is still in use. This variability hurdle has been overcome using strategies like as the creation of polyploids, poly-crosses, and mutations, which have produced moderate gains in this important rabi crop. Three doses of EMS (0.1, 0.3, and 0.5%) were administered to dried seeds of Wardan, BB-2, and BB-3 in this investigation. The M1 generations were raised in the open air. Ten days after seeding, germination was noticed . highest percentage. With 0.1 percent EMS, the maximum percentage of germination (85%) was seen, whereas with 0.5 percent EMS, the lowest rate of germination (12%) was observed. A total of 98 individual plants from various treatments were cut and threshed independently. Plant height, the number of tillers, leaves, and leaf-to-stem ratios, trifoliate, tetrafoliate, and pentafoliate leaves, and short, oblong, bright-green, somewhat hairy leaflets are all enhanced by selection. Variables include the 180â210 days it takes flower heads to mature under varied climatic circumstances, their shapes and colours, and other factors. The yields of dry matter, green fodder, and their daily production are the most important among them. The process has been successful in enhancing these traits.