Combining ability studies in sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.)

In the present study, 4 CMS lines and 12 testers were crossed in line x tester fashion. The 48 Fl hybrids along with 16 parents and 2 standard checks (APSH-11 and MSFH-8) were grown to estimate gca and sca for eight characters. The CMS 7–1A, EC 68415 Bulk and EC 68415 were good combiners for seed yield, while CMS 234A, CMS 207A among lines and EC 68415 among testers showed good gca effects for earliness. Among hybrids, the best performance for seed yield (56.9 g/plant) and sca effects were noticed for CMS 7–1A x EC 68415 S₂ which out yielded the standard check APSH-11 by 47.6 per cent. The highest oil content coupled with high yield/plant was recorded in the hybrids CMS 300A x EC 68415 S₄, CMS 300A x Morden S₃ and CMS 7–1A x Morden S₃.