Studies on combining ability and heterosis for yield and growth parameters in brinjal (Solanum melongena L.).

Eight lines and three testers and their twenty four hybrids were evaluated for fruit yield and its component traits with an objective to know heterosis and combining ability for eight traits namely days to first flowering, number of branches per plant, plant height, number of fruits per plant, fruit weight, fruit length, fruit girth, fruit yield per plant in brinjal. The ratio of GCA/SCA variance revealed the predominance of non-additive gene action for all the characters studied. Based on per se performance, sea effects and standard heterosis, three hybrids viz. L7 (White brinjal) x T1 (Annamalai), L7 (white brinjal) x T2 <PLR 1), L3 (Kunnam) x T1 (Annamalai) were found to be promising for heterosis breeding. The lines which recorded high fruit yield per plant, EP 378, White Brinjal and Pusa Sadabahar were found good general combiners for days to first flowering, number of branches per plant, plant height, number of fruits per plant, fruit weight, fruit length, fruit girth and fruit yield per plant. The tester which showed high fruit yield per plant viz., Hissar Pragath was good general combiner for all the eight traits studied.