Collection of Oil Palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) Germplasm in the Northern Regions of Ghana

A B ST R A C T The need for intensive germplasm collection to broaden the genetic base of oil palm ( Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) breeding to safeguard the vulnerability and the rate at which wild oil palm are becoming extinct as these wild oil palms are very imperative. The paper highlights oil palm accessions that were collected from the Central Region of Ghana. Thirty seven (37) accessions were collected from seven (7) locations in the Central Region. Data on stem height, bunch weight, bunch length, bunch breadth, bunch depth, stalk weight, weight of ten fruits, weight of ten nuts, mesocarp to fruit ratio, fruit length, fruit diameter, nut diameter, kernel diameter, shell thickness and other qualitative traits were examined. The mean, coefficient of variation and range of the individual traits, were statistically analysed using standard procedures. Differences in the qualitative traits were recorded with most of the oil palm accessions having nigrescens fruits. The Tenera (T) type recorded the highest mesocarp to fruit ratio of 63.8%. These prospected germplasm accessions are being germinated and raised for future planting in the germplasm fields of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (C.S.I.R) - Oil Palm Research Institute (OPRI) to be introduced for breeding programmes.