Flowering Time Response of Diverse Lentil (Lens Culinaris Medik.) Germplasm Grown in Multiple Environments

Adaptation of lentil (Lens culinaris Medik.) germplasm from one environment to another is a complex process and days to flower (DTF) is considered as the primary phenological stage determining the adaptation of genotypes. Studies revealed that temperature and photoperiod are major environmental factors defining DTF. This research was conducted with the objective of understanding the variation of DTF governed mainly by temperature and photoperiod and their interactions and identifying genomic regions and candidate genes or markers associated with DTF in specific environments. To accomplish this, 324 lentil genotypes were grown in three replications at ten field locations over two seasons in three major lentil growing macro-environments (Northern temperate, Mediterranean and South Asian). Results showed significant variation (p