Abstract:
Four genetically diverse parents were selected and crossed in a full diallel mating design
involving the parents, direct F1s and reciprocal F1s. These parents were evaluated
alongside with their 6 direct F1s and 6 reciprocal F1s in a randomized complete
block design in 3 replications. Combining ability showed the dominance of additive gene
action for all the traits under study. The result showed significant differences among
the parents for all the characters except for number of days to emergence. The relative
magnitude of GCA / SCA variance ratio was greater than unity suggesting the
preponderance of additive gene action for all the characters under investigation. Based on
an overall evaluation of GCA effects and per se performance, the parents Cu 100 and Cu
999 emerged as good general combiners. Among the crosses, Cu 100 x Cu 999 was
considered best because it recorded highest per se performance for fruit yield |
