An assessment of combining ability and heterosis for yield and yield attributes in field pea (Pisum sativum L.)

Combining ability analysis carried out for ten characters using ten diverse parents crossed in half diallel design in field pea revealed that variance due to gca and sca were highly significant for days to maturity, plant height, number of pods per plant, number of seeds per pod, 1000-seed weight and seed yield per plant, indicating the importance of both the additive and non-additive genetic components of variation. Parental lines Rachna, Shikha and KPMR-516 were found to be good general combiners for grain yield and yield component traits. The most promising crosses with high specific combining ability for yield and yield components were Rachna x HUDP-15; Shikha x KPMR-522; HUDP-15 x KPMR-516; Rachna x HUP-2 and Rachna x KPMR-516. The significant positive standard heterosis over HUP-2 for seed yield per plant was exhibited by Rachna × HUDP-15 followed by Rachna × KPMR-516 and HUDP-15 × KPMR-516. Heterosis over better parent was found to be significant in desirable direction for grain yield in HUDP 15 × KPMR 516, HUP 2 × HFP 4 and KPMR 516 × HFP 4. These cross combinations involved at least one parent with high or average GCA effect for a particular trait.