DOI: 10.36347/sjavs.2016.v03i06.008

Pages: 442-447

Experimentation took place during the 2009 rainy season on the experimental station of the Institute of Radio-Isotopes of the University of Niamey in Niger (latitude 13°29' N, longitude 2°10' E). The objective of this study was to demonstrate the intra-specific variability in pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) Br. R.) through the evaluation of a seed lot, and to identify traits which are most correlated with grain yields in end-of-cycle water deficit. This study also serves as a reference to an attempt to improve the genotype HKP which is promoted in Niger. The experimental design is a complete randomized block with four replicates. After the emergence, crops were thinned out to one plant per pole so as to assess one single seed per pole. This study confirms the good correlations between grain yield and its main components. However, it has the merit of showing that in the case of end-of-cycle dryness, the number of tillers per pole and the size of the tillers are the most important traits for maintaining the grain yield. These two parameters must be taken into account by millet breeders in the semi-arid zone.