Assessment of genotype by year interaction for yield components and physiological traits in cotton under drought stress using multivariate analysis and genetic parameters

The objective of this study was to identify genotype high yielding and drought-tolerant, by understanding the interaction GY pattern for yield, yield components and physiological traits in 24 cotton genotypes over five years under drought stress conditions using AMMI analysis, genetic parameters and multivariate analysis. All assessed traits were significantly impacted by genotypes and GY interaction using the AMMI model, with the exception of chlorophyll b by GY interaction. Meanwhile, seed cotton yield/plant, number of open bolls/plant, lint percentage, lint cotton yield/plant, and number of fruiting branches/plant were significantly affected by the year's factor. High BSH coupled with high GAM% was observed for all studied traits, indicating the heritability due to additive type of gene action and, the importance of these genotypes and the possibility of effective selection for drought-tolerant genotype development. A statistically significant correlation was discovered between cotton yield and most investigated traits under drought stress conditions. Direct selection can be done through these traits based on genetic parameters and Pearson's correlations analyses, which will be effective for drought tolerance and enhancing cotton yield. The results of our study's Pearson's correlation analysis, PCA and cluster analysis could be relevant and appropriate for studying drought tolerance mechanisms and cotton yield improvement. According to PCA and cluster analysis, the genotypes G20 and G19 followed by G5, G4 and G21 genotypes showed the best performance in response to drought stress regarding the yield, yield components and physiological-related traits. The previous genotypes could be used in future cotton breeding efforts in Egypt to promote drought tolerance, improve cotton productivity, and sustainable production during drought stress conditions.