Identification of Good General and Specific Combiners for Yield, Yield-contributing Traits and Blast Resistance in Pearl Millet
Combining ability analysis was carried out in pearl millet using a Line × Tester mating design involving four female lines, four males, and their sixteen hybrids to understand the genetic control of grain yield, yield-attributing traits and blast resistance and to identify superior parents and hybrid combinations for breeding. Analysis of variance revealed significant differences among crosses for most traits at Tirupati and Hyderabad and under pooled conditions, indicating the presence of substantial genetic variability. Significant line × tester interactions for most characters indicated a major role of non-additive gene action in trait expression. The magnitudes of the variances due to GCA (σ²gca) and SCA (σ²sca) revealed that both additive and non-additive gene actions were responsible for controlling the inheritance of the traits. Among the parental lines, 23S406B emerged as the best general combiner for grain yield, blast resistance and several yield-related traits. Among the testers, 1092R and ICMR 08222 exhibited desirable GCA effects across grain yield, blast resistance and associated characters. Hybrids 23S406B × 1092R and 23S546B × 1092R were identified as the best specific combiners for grain yield, blast resistance and associated traits, indicating their potential for commercial hybrid development.