Wheat Project Directorate, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi
1Present address: Department of Botany, Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth, Dapoli (Maharashtra).
*Part of the thesis submitted by the first author in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Ph.D. degree of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi.
The nature and magnitudes of genetic variances controlling grain yield and its eight component characters were investigated in a diallel cross among nine parents of durum wheat. Both additive and non-additive genetic effects were important in the expression of the different characters studied. However, the magnitude of additive component was higher than the nonadditive component for all the characters excepting number of tillers per plant, 1000-grain weight and grain yield per plant. It is suggested that a breeding methodology that can exploit both additive and nonadditive genetic effects would be the most effective in attaining maximum improvement in yield and its component characters in durum wheat.
