Combining ability studies for yield and its compo-nents in brinjal (Solanum melongena L.)

An eight parent diallel cross without reciprocal of brinjal and their twenty eight F₁ hybrids were subjected to combining ability analysis for yield and its contributing characters. None of the parents was found to be a good general combiner for all the characters. However, among the parents, DBR-31, Pusa Bindu, Punjab Sadabhar and Pusa Kranti were good general combiner for fruit yield and its components. However, on the basis of overall performance parents DBR-31 was found to be good combiner for ten characters, Pusa Bindu was found good general combiner for nine characters, Panjab Sadabhar was found good general combiner for eight characters and Pusa Kranti was found good general combiner for eight characters. The crosses Pusa Bindu x KS-331, Pusa Kranti x KS-331, Pusa Kranti x Swarna Mani, DBR-31 x Swarna Mani, Pusa Kranti x Aruna, Pusa Bindu x Swarna Mani, KS-224 x Pusa Kranti and DBR-31 x Aruna which displayed significant and desirable SCA effects for fruit yield per plant, involved at least one parent exhibiting significant GCA effects and could be placed in high x low category. SCA effects of cross combinations (KS-224 x Swarna Mani, KS224 x Aruna, Swarna Mani x KS-331 and Swarna Mani x Aruna) for fruit yield per plant were associated with low x low gene effects, indicating the preponderance role of non-additive type of gene action in them.