Combining Ability Studies for Yield and its Component Traits Through Line x Tester Mating Design in Local and Exotic Upland Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L)

Combining ability is mostly used by breeders to select approximate cultivars to produce the larger progeny of new combination through their hybridization. Present study aims to estimate general combining ability of the parents and specific combining ability of hybrids for yield and component traits. Line x tester analysis involving four lines, five exotic testers resulting twenty hybrids and a check G. Cot Hy-12 were raised during kharif 2010–2011. The significance of gca and sca variance was evident from mean square of all the characters indicating that additive as well as non-additive genes controlling the traits. Among the parents G. Cot-10, G. Cot-20, SA1723 and EC-132021 were the best general combiners for yield and its components. EC-132021 exotic tester was the best general combine for yield attributing traits. The best specific combinations were G. Cot-16 x SA-1756, G. Cot-10 x GISV-264 and Deviraj x SA1723 for seed cotton yield per plant, lint yield per plant and number of bolls per plant. The hybrids G. Cot.10 x GISV-264, G. Cot-20 x EC-132021, G. Cot16 x SA-1723 and Deviraj x GISV-264 exhibited significant sca effects for boll weight. None of the crosses possessed significant sca effects for ginning percentage in desired direction.