COMBINING ABILITY IN RABI SORGHUM (SORGHUM BICOLOR L. MOENCH)

Abstract

Combining ability effects and variances were estimated in Fl over three different environments. The mean squares due to gca and sca were highly significant in individual environments as well as pooled over environments, for all the traits. The estimate of interaction component gca x environment and sea x environment was significant for all the traits except days to flowering. However, the interaction component due to gca x environment variances showed higher values as compared to the sca x environment variances. It shows that the additive variance X environment interaction was more as compared to nonadditive variance X environment interaction. The parent Spv-422 and Spv-438 contributed favourable genes for earliness, plant height, while Spv-438, Spv-86 and Spv-41 were good general combiners for grain yield, numberofprimaries, and secondaries, 250 grain weight, and fodder yield. The crosses involving good x good and good X poor combiners threw more productive lines. Diverse good combiners should be used in hybridization and the resultant material should be exposed to different environments for identifying the stable high yielding genotypes.