Combining Ability for Physiological Traits in Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Combining ability analysis was conducted in 9x9 parental diallel progenies for physiological traits, namely, flag leaf area, peduncle length and grain filling period, in wheat. Peduncle length was observed to be controlled by mainly gca variance while, both gca and sca variances were important for flag leaf area and grain filling period. However, flag leaf area had higher influence of additive gene effect as compared to the non-additive gene, whereas for grain filling period both additive and non-additive genetic components of variation were equally important. The parents DL-803-3, K-8708 and HD-2160 were observed to be good general combiners for flag leaf area, K-68 and HUW81 for peduncle length and HP-1102, WH-542, HD 2402 and K-8708 for physiological grain filling period. Mean perforamnce of the lines was observed to be related with their gca effects in most of the cases. The cross combinations which showed high sca effects were involved in majority of the crosses both poor combiners and in some cases, one being good and the other being poor combiner.