Genetic studies for isolation of superior parents and hybrids for a further breeding programme in safflower (Carthamus tinctorious L)

Combining ability analysis discriminates the parents and crosses, provides information about the breeding method to be adopted for genetic improvement of a specific character. Thirty hybrids obtained by mating two females with fifteen males in L × T fashion were evaluated in RBD along with parents to estimate the combining ability of parents and crosses for seed yield and yield contributing traits. The parents and hybrids significantly differed amongst themselves for different characters, viz., days to maturity, 100 seeds weight, capsules per plant, branches per plant, seed yield, seed volume weight and oil content. Among the males, GMU-590, GMU-2273, GMU-2830 and GMU-589 and the females, AKS CMS-3B had good gca effects for seed yield and some other yield contributing traits. However, GMU-7573 and GMU-2830 were found best general combiners for the trait oil content. All these selected parents may be utilised in a different breeding programme for genetic enhancement of the trait involved. The hybrids AKS CMS-2A × GMU-1731 and AKS CMS-3A × GMU-7448 were identified as good combinations for seed volume weight and capsules per plant. Whereas the hybrids AKS CMS-3A × GMU-2273 and AKS CMS-2A × GMU-6891 were effective for seed filling percentage and seed yield per plant. Three promising hybrids viz., AKS CMS-3A × GMU-7448, AKS CMS-3A × GMU-2273 and AKS CMS-2A × GMU-6891 were designated as promising hybrids as they had good per se performance and significant sca effects for seed yield per plant and most of its contributing characters which can be utilized for heterosis breeding and release of new hybrids at commercial level after thorough multilocation testing. Further, the hybrids AKS CMS-3A × GMU-7448, AKS CMS-3A × GMU-590 and AKS CMS-3A × AKS-589 involving one or both good general combining parents with non-significant sca effects for many studied characters which may be utilized to isolate desirable segregants in progressive generations for identification and release of new varieties by hybridizing the ‘B’ lines of concerned CMS line with similar males again.