MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERIZATION AND VARIETAL DELINEATION OF Vitellaria paradoxa (SHEA BUTTER) TREES FOUND ON THE UNIVERSITY OF ILORIN MAIN CAMPUS

Abstract

The present study reports on the morphological characterization and varietal delineation of
Vitellaria paradoxa at the University of Ilorin Permanent Site. Forty trees were randomly
sampled from two areas, (protected and disturbed), and used for this study. Thirty-eight
descriptors, including both qualitative and quantitative variables, from growth forms and leaf
descriptors to inflorescence and fruit descriptors, were used to assess the morphological
variability. The data collected was subjected to R-software and SPSS version 16 for analysis.
Result showed significant variation (P≤0.05) in quantitative morphological characteristics across
the trees. There existed positive cross correlations (P≤0.05) between leaf blade length, leaf blade
width and leaf petiole length. Dendrogram constructed using Average Linkage Groups from
these characters produced eight cluster groups, each with distinctive characteristics that
differentiated them from the other groups. These groups could serve as local shea varieties in the
study area and could be a base for any Vitellaria development and breeding programmes.