Combining Ability Study in Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.)

The present investigation on diallel analysis was conducted to study the combining ability in tomato for fourteen characters including fruit yield and its component characters. ANOVA revealed that both additive and non-additive variances were significant for fruit yield and its related traits indicating their improvements in the expression of various traits. The magnitude of non-additive variance was higher for fruit yield and its contributing traits indicating predominant role of nonadditive gene action in the inheritance of the traits. The parents viz., NTE 1 and NTE 2 were the good general combiner for fruit yield per plant which had also the good general combining ability effects for the yield attributes. Specific combining ability revealed that top yielding hybrids viz., NTE-2 x NTE 3 and NTE 2 x NTE 4 expressed significant sca effects for fruit yield and its attributing characters involving at least one good general combiner.