Genetic variability for morphological and biochemical characters in safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.)

Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) is cultivated primarily for its oil, which is regarded as 'healthy'. A set of 58 varieties and breeding lines of safflower were analysed for genetic diversity for 23 desirable characters. A great deal of genetic variability was found for the characters like days to bolt and flower, plant height, oil content, test weight of seeds. But for the characters like flower colour, fatty acid profile, the variability was narrow.