Trends in Biosciences

Twenty strains of macrosperma lentil were subjected to partial diallel mating with S=9. Among parents KLB 104 was good general combiner for high grain yield coupled with early flowering and maturity, higher number of branches, reduced clusters/plant, enhanced pods/plant and small seed size. Likewise KLB12-6 was also good general combiner for grain yield/plant but associated with late flowering and maturity, profuse growth, clusters/plant, few pods/cluster, increased seeds/pod but poor seed weight. Similarly KLB 12-8, K 75 and KLB 123 were also good general combiner for most of the attributes. The per se performance of parents and their general combining effects were not in harmony. The crosses KLB 104 X KLB123, KLB 08-3 XKLB 820, K 75 XKLB 317 gave higher grain yield/plant in F1 and also exhibited high degree of heterosis with low inbreeding depression in F2 and involved parents of high x high gca effects. In other crosses, in general, high heterosis coupled with high degree of I.D., involved parents of high X low gca effects combination indicating thereby additive and dominant gene action, respectively for grain yield/plant. For improvement of macrosperma lentil, pedigree selection is suggested for isolating high yielding genotypes.