In A. comosus, self-incompatibility occurs due to the inhibition of pollen tube growth in the upper third of the style, generally in the stigmatic lobes(Kems et al. 193 Majumdar et al. 1964). This feature is controlled gametophytically by a single locus with multiple alleles(Brewbaker& Gorez 1967). Self incompatibility is characteristic of the cultivated A. comosus that prevents or reduces self-fertilization rates. Flowers of A. comosus var. com are normally self-sterile and fruit development is parthenocarpic(does not require fertilisation) (Py et al. 1987)