Abstract

Sesame is an oilseed crop which can be grown on marginal lands. Selection of stable sesame cultivars that can adapt to local environmental conditions can be a very important food security strategy. A set of 21 high yielding sesame accessions that have been selected for a temperate region were grown in the transitional zone of Ghana during the major season of 2014. The seeds were sown after the first rain in the year in a completely randomized design, with three replications. The objective was to evaluate the effect of the contrasting environment on sesame phenology and to select cultivars with yield potential that can be accepted into local farming systems in the new environment. Morphological, physiological and agronomic traits, leading to yield were recorded in this study. Number of capsules per plant had the strongest association (72%) with seed yield. Five accessions showed a combination of early maturity < 12 weeks with high overall mean seed yield (> 20 g per plant) and good harvest index (0.29). Based on their mean performance these cultivars have been selected as promising exotic cultivars for the new locality.

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