Abstract:
Curry leaves (Murraya koenigii) are significantly used as a medicinal spice; highly
valued as an ingredient that promotes appetite for its unique, inherent; odor and flavor. Its
nutrient property is used for cosmetic products, functional goods, and considered a valued
export commodity. Being a native wild species, domestication cannot be seen. Thus, high
morphological differences could be observed making high diversity. The ecotypes
of Murraya koenigii were proved to be available at Dambulla, Matale, and Ritigala sites
but morphological studies have not been conducted to find whether the morphological
characters are diversifying geographically. This study was carried out to identify the
morphological characters of the ecotypes of Murraya koenigii. Thus, the plant descriptor
was developed. From the above selected ecoregions including Mahiyanganaya district,
samples (12) with replicates (3) were collected randomly. Cluster analysis was conducted
for all the sixteen characters including nine quantitative and seven qualitative parameters,
to identify whether they are genetically overlapped. There was a significant difference
between selected ecotypes from each selected eco-regions with consideration to the given
quantitative morphological traits based on the analysis of variance. Dambulla type1
clustered with Matale type2. As the second cluster, all other types were clustered
together. Dambulla type3 was clustered as a separate group. For
the Mahiyanganaya (MH) samples, though the comparative results could not be obtained
from the mean comparison data analysis; MH type2 and MH type3 were clustered
together. This cluster reflected only the qualitative traits but not the quantitative
characters. Ecotypes were clustered together with each other thus proving that there is a
significant morphological variation among the ecotypes of Murraya koenigii.
Keywords: Descriptor, Ecotype, Morphological Characterization, Native, Wild Species
