Gene effects for grain yield and related traits in sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench]

Abstract

Generation mean analysis was carried out to estimate the nature and magnitude of gene effects in sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench]. Inadequacy of simple additive-dominance model reflected the presence of epistatic interaction. Ail the four traits In majority of crosses were under the influence of dominance gene effects. Higher magnitude of dominance and dominance x dominance gene interactions could not be exploited in the crosses with duplicate epistasis as it minimizes the expression of heterosis. Reciprocal recurrent selection and/or biparental mating in early segregating generations can prove to be an effective approach for development of high yielding sorghum varieties.