Development of oilseed crop cultivation has an important role in provision of people’s need for requisit edible oil. Iran is one of the areas origin safflower as a drought and salt tolerant corp. Therefore safflower can be a suitable alternative crop for cultivation in marginal areas. Limited studies have been carried out on new high yield genotypes of safflower. Results of several studies have indicated significant differences between safflower genotypes in seed yield, yield components and seed oil percentage. Also winter types of improved genotypes with more cold tolerance, have high seed and oil yield. In order to make an evaluation of seed yield, yield components and oil yield in new spineless safflower genotypes, a field experiment was conducted at Agricultural Research Center, East Azarbayjan in 2000. The experiment was laid out as a randomized complete block design with four replications. The treatments were 14 genotypes of new spineless safflower. Results indicated significant differences between studied genotypes in seed yield, yield components and oil yield. Cluster analysis of genotypes based on those traits, located them in 3 groups. Having 906.89 kilograms of oil yield per hectare, the third group was noted as the superior group. L.R.K. 271, L.R.K. 264, L.R.K. 274, L.R.K. 229 L.R.K. 261 and Varamin 295 genotypes belonged to third group. Varamin 295 as a spineless genotype was of better productivity (2725.0 and 853.8Kg seed and oil yield per hectare, respectively). This genotype is used as seed by farmers in the country. First and second groups yielded 678.55 and 678.0 (mean oil yield) per hectare, respectively.
)