A systematic collection of jatropha curcas germplasm has been carried out from four distinct ecogeographic zones of peninsular India in 2005. This involved recording of passport data, documentation of important plant traits in-situ, ecogeographic parameters and assessment of variability. By using the Soxhlet method, the oil content of 162 collected accessions was estimated, which ranged from 22% to 42%. A method has been developed for identification of superior lines by assessing the phenotypic traits of plants recorded in-situ. This method facilitates selection of promising accessions for multi-location evaluation and hastens the process of utilization of germplasm. The traits for the plus trees of jatropha have been discussed. (c) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.