Studies on heterosis and combining ability in ridge gourd [Luffa acutangula (L.) Roxb.]
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Date
2017-12-31
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College of Horticulture and Forestry, Jhalawar
Abstract
The present investigation entitled “Studies on heterosis and combining ability in ridge
gourd [Luffa acutangula (L.) Roxb.]” conducted during rainy season, 2016 at Protected
Cultivation unit of the College of Horticulture and Forestry, Jhalawar, Rajasthan. Nine
diverse parents were crossed in a diallel fashion (excluding reciprocals) for generating the 36
F1 hybrids. All the nine parents, 36 hybrids and one standard check were grown in a
randomized block design with three replications. Observation were recorded on 14 characters
viz., days to anthesis of first male flower, days to anthesis of first female flower, node
number at which first male flower appeared, node number at which first female flower
appeared, fruit length (cm), fruit width (cm), fruit weight (g), days to fruit harvesting, number
of ridges per fruit, number of fruits per plant, yield per plant (kg), fruiting period, dry matter
(%) and total soluble solids (°brix). The data were subjected to analysis of variance, heterosis
and combining ability variances and effects for each character.
The analysis of variance indicated significant variability present among the parents and
hybrids for all 14 characters. Parents vs hybrids was also significant for all the traits except
fruit width.
The analysis of variance for combining ability revealed that mean square due to gca
and sca were significant for all characters. The ratio of σ2 gca/ σ2sca was lesser than one for
all character, thereby indicating preponderance of non-additive gene action for of these traits.
On the basis of gca effects and per se performance, parent JRG-2 and Sathputia were
recorded as the best general combiners for all the characters including yield. In general, the
parents, which have the best per se performance, were also the best general combiners
indicating a positive association between these two parameters.
Specific combining ability effects of crosses revealed that six crosses showed
significant sca effects for total yield per plant and for eight crosses for number of fruits per
plant. Based on sca and per se performance, the best crosses for yield per plant was Pusa
Nutan × Sathputia and JRG-2 × Swarna Upahar.
The extent of heterosis based on the three best crosses for total yield per plant ranged
from 78.41 - 151.85 over mid parent; 87.94 - 139.89 over better parent; 78.54 - 89.34 over
check variety revealed that there is a great scope of realizing higher yield in ridge gourd
through heterosis breeding.
` Six and ten hybrids showed the significant and positive heterobeltiosis and standard
heterosis for total fruit yield per plant, respectively. The cross combination Pusa Nutan ×
Sathputia registered the highest fruit yield and also found heterotic for many characters
including earliness.
Description
Studies on heterosis and combining ability in ridge
gourd [Luffa acutangula (L.) Roxb.]