Elucidation of Combining Ability and Gene in Bottle Gourd [Lagenaria siceraria (Mol.) Standl.]

Aims: To Study combining ability effects and evaluate gene action for fruit yield with associated traits of bottle gourd.

Study Design: Randomized block design.

Place and Duration of Study: The seeds of F1 hybrids were produced during summer 2021 at Potato Research Station, S. D. Agricultural University, Deesa.

Methodology: The experimental material consisted of twelve parents, their 35 Line × Tester crosses and one standard check (ABGH 1).

Results: The analysis of variance for combining ability revealed that the mean sum of squares due to female (lines) and male (testers) were highly significant for all the traits except fruit girth, average fruit weight, chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b and total chlorophyll. The gca effects indicated that four male parents ABGS 14-25, ABGS 11-17, ABGS 11-24 and PUNJAB LONG and three female parents DBG 5, NDBG 132 and LOCAL were found good general combiners for fruit yield per plant and its some of the contributing traits. Based on estimates of sca effects, the most promising hybrids for fruit yield per plant were DBG 5 × ABGS 14-27, NDBG 132 × PUNJAB LONG and GPBG 108 × ABGS 11-24. The good general combiners for fruit yield and contributing traits can be utilized in intensive crossing programme and select transgressive segregants for desired characters in segregating generations to develop superior lines.

Conclusion: The ratio of σ2GCA / σ2SCAwas less than unity for all the characters under study, which suggested greater role of non-additive genetic variance in the inheritance of these characters. The genetic components of variance revealed that different type of gene action were involved for fruit yield associated with different traits in bottle gourd.