Vol. 10, Issue 9 (2021)

Author(s):
More Ambika, Deosarkar DB, SP Mehtre, Dhutmal RR and HV Kalpande

Abstract:
An experiment was conducted to assess the potential parental lines and crosses for grain yield and its contributing traits in sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) using line x tester mating design. Thirty hybrids derived from mating five testers with six lines in L x T design along with their parents and two checks viz., CSH 15 R and CSV 22 R were evaluated in Randomized Block Design with three replications. Observations were recorded on randomly selected 5 five plants in each replication for grain yield and its contributing characters. Results evidenced the higher estimates of sca variances than the corresponding gca variances for the characters plant height, panicle length, panicle breadth, number of primaries per panicle, grain yield, fodder yield and harvest index. For general combining ability effects, Parbhani Moti and CSV 29R among the lines and PBMR 3, PBMR 5 among tester exhibited higher mean values and desired gca effects for grain yield and its contributing traits plant height, panicle breadth, number of primary branches, 100 grain weight and harvest index. CSV 29 R x PBMR 3 identified as best hybrid for grain yield as it exhibited significantly desirable sca effect followed by Parbhani Moti x PBMR 4, Phule Anuradha x PBMR 3, Parbhani Moti x PBMR 1, MS 104B x PBMR 3 and Parbhani Moti x PBMR 5. In addition to grain yield per plant these crosses also performed better for panicle breadth, number of primary branches per panicle, 100 seed weight and harvest index. Most of the crosses were derived from the parents with high x high or high x low gca effects indicating scope for selection of superior segregants with desirable genes in early segregating generations of bi-parental crosses or heterosis breeding to exploit non additive gene effects will be useful.