Repeatability and minimum selection time for fatty acid composition in olive progenies

Fatty acid composition has been studied in seedlings from a diallel cross (nine families) among 'Arbequina', 'Frantoio', and 'Picual' olive (Olea europaea L.). Variance among samples within genotype, genetic and environmental (yearly) variances, and year-to-year consistency of data were estimated. A correlation analysis of the standardized data for fatty acid composition between first and second year data was also carried out to select the most interesting genotypes as early as possible. The results showed that fatty acid composition exhibit significant differences between genotypes and years. The variance component attributable to differences between genotypes represented >60% of total variance for all the fatty acids evaluated. High correlation coefficients between the first and second year data were found for oleic and linoleic acid percentage; these correlations were slightly poorer for the other fatty acids analyzed. These results may be useful for improving the efficiency of olive breeding programs in first-stage selection on whole progeny populations.