【Objective】Kiwifruit is a dioecious and self-sterile plant, requiring an appropriate ratio of male to female plants or artificial pollination for effective fertilization. Insufficient pollination can result in reduced seed numbers, low endogenous hormone levels, and ultimately, smaller or deformed fruit. Identifying superior male plants with high pollen yield and viability can enhance pollination efficiency, lower production costs, and improve fruit quality, which holds great significance for kiwifruit cultivation. However, there has been limited reporting on the varieties of male kiwifruit plants. This study aimed to screen male plants with desirable traits from 120 progeny of 'Jinyi' kiwifruit seedlings, providing valuable resources for kiwifruit breeding programs. 【Methods】The experiment was conducted in April 2022 at the kiwifruit breeding orchard of Shen Shan Xing Nong Science and Technology Co., Ltd., Chibi City, Hubei Province. The experimental materials consisted of 120 four-year-old male seedlings of Jinyi kiwifruit. Traits such as the number of anthers per male flower, pollen quantity per anther, and pollen germination rate were measured. In addition, analyses of variation patterns, outliers, distribution characteristics, and principal components were performed. 【Results】 The analysis revealed that the average number of anthers, pollen quantity (in 10,000 grains), and germination rate (%) were 45.60±8.30, 10.30±2.33, and 34.66±22.24, respectively. The median values were 44.10, 10.04, and 33.72, and the modes were 44.60, 10.17, and 70.53, with distribution ranges of 31.50–99.40, 6.08–19.17, and 1.00–86.24, respectively. The coefficients of variation for these traits exceeded 18%, with the highest variation observed in the pollen germination rate (64.17%), indicating substantial variation within the sample population. The maximum-to-minimum ratios for these traits were greatest for germination rate (86.24 times), followed by the number of anthers (3.16 times) and pollen quantity (3.15 times). Outlier analysis identified JY-334 and JY-250 as mild high outliers in anther number, JY-402 and JY-130 as mild high outliers in pollen quantity, and JY-329 as an extreme outlier in pollen quantity. No outliers were observed in the germination rate. After excluding outliers, the distribution analysis showed that the median anther number was 43.80, predominantly ranging from 36.00 to 54.00 (82.50% of samples). The median pollen quantity was 99,800 grains, mainly between 70,000 and 130,000 grains (80.83% of samples). The median germination rate was 33.72%, with the majority of samples (65.83%) distributed between 10.00% and 60.00%. The skewness (Sk) and kurtosis (Su) values for anther number, pollen quantity, and germination rate were 0.514, 0.406, and 0.417 (Sk), and 0.085, -0.28, and -0.74 (Su), respectively. Frequency distribution plots indicated a continuous distribution of these traits, with a larger number of intermediate plants, fitting a normal distribution pattern. Principal component analysis indicated that the eigenvector value of germination rate was the largest, and the contribution rate was 43.16%. Based on comprehensive evaluations, the male plants JY-402, JY-275, JY-212, JY-403, and JY-260 were identified as possessing superior male flower traits. 【Conclusion】Significant variation was observed in the male flower traits of Jinyi kiwifruit, providing a valuable resource for the breeding of male plants. JY-402, JY-275, JY-212, JY-403, and JY-260 were identified as potential candidates for use in breeding programs, with JY-402 showing the best overall performance and warranting further study.
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