YIELD AND NUT QUALITY OF 29 CASHEW MOTHER TREES (ANACARDIUM OCCIDENTALE L) ESTABLISHED AT THE GERMPLASM OF OUOGHI IN CENTRAL REGION OF BENIN

Description of subject: One of the main constraints to cashew crop development in Benin and Africa is the unavailability of efficient planting material for the plantations establishment. This constraint is largely responsible for the low level of nut yieldsobtained in cashew plantations. Objective: This study aimed to assess the agronomic performances of 29 different cashew mother trees established in the germplasm of the Central Agricultural Research Center (CRA-Centre) of the National Agricultural Research Institute of Benin located in Save, Central region, in sightof selecting high-performance clones to be distributed in rural areas. Materials and Methods: Nuts production, unit nuts weight and the kernelrate data were collected on 29 cashew mother trees during the harvest seasons from 2017 to 2020. These data were submitted to the analysis of variance and comparison of the means tests with software R. Results: The average nut yields of the 29 cashew mother trees varied from 0.85 to 11.98 kg / tree with a general average of 3.57 kg / tree at the age of 7 years old. Average unit nut weights ranged from 4.61 to 8.28 g with an overall average of 6.40 g. The average kernel ratio of nuts ranged from 24.08% to 32.46% with an overall average of 27.18%. The average weight of akernel varied from 1.43 to 2.15g with an average of 1.71g. At the end of the fouryears assessment, five of the 29 cashew mother trees with a minimum nut yield of 5 kg / tree were preselected as the first efficient cashew clones from Benin. Conclusion: These preliminary results are very important for the cashew breeding program in Benin. Furtherstudieswill plan to assess the cashew mother trees performance at 10, 15, 20 and 25 years old.