Indian Society of Genetics & Plant Breeding
The pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.] growing
area of India is divided into three zones: the arid northwest
(A1), the more favorable northern area (A) and the
peninsular area (B), based on environmental factors. This
study was done to assess adaptation patterns among
common cultivar types to these three zones. Thirty cultivars
(arid zone landraces, open-pollinated dual-purpose varieties
and grain-type F1 hybrids) were grown over two years in
a representative location of each three main zones, plus
an additional, severely drought stressed A1 zone location.
The F1 hybrids demonstrated a stable adaptation to all
zones, in terms of both biomass and HI, although their
actual level of biomass was the least of all three cultivar
types. The landraces showed a strong specific adaptation
to the Al zone, in terms of both biomass and HI. The
open-pollinated varieties, by contrast, were preferentially
adapted to the A and B zones, and not to the A1 zone.
The results are discussed in terms of the genetic origin
of the various cultivar types and the implications for the
genetic improvement of pearl millet on an All-India basis
Keywords: Pearl millet, adaptation, genotype x environment interaction, cultivar type
Year: 2006
Volume: 66
Issue: 3
Article DOI: NA
Print ISSN: 0019-5200
Online ISSN: 0975-6906
F. R. Bidinger, A. G. Bhasker Raj and C. T. Hash info_circle
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