Inheritance of yield and quality components in durum wheat (Triticum durum desf.)

Abstract

Grain yield is a complex character resulting from the interaction of a number of component characters and the utilization value of durum wheat depends upon the nature of milling and food value. All these quality traits have inter relationship with yield and its components. Generation means analysis is a simple and useful technique for characterising gene effects [1]. The knowledge on the nature of gene -effects operative in the inheritance of yield, yield components and quality components would be useful for the development of better cultivars. The present investigations were carried out with six generations viz., P1, P2, F1, F2, BC1 and BC2 generated from each of the four crosses. WH896 x MACS2846 (C-I), WH896 x PDW233 (C-II), WH912 x HI6896 (C-III) and WH912 x MACS2846 (C-IV). Six generations of each cross were sown in a compact family block design. Weighted analysis of Cavalli [2] were performed in all the four crosses for the quantitative and qualitative traits to know the adequacy of three parameter (non-epistatic model). The estimate of gene effects Le. six parameter model were obtained using the generation mean analysis model of Jinks and Jones [1 ].