Diallel Analysis of Yield and its Component Characters in Tomato.

The experimental material for the present investigations consisted of 66 one way F1 hybrids produced in a diallel cross mating and their twelve parents. The experiment was laid out in an RBD using three replications. The ANOVA for combining ability and the components of variation analysis revealed the involvement of both additive and non-additive gene effects in the inheritance of fruit weight (g), number of marketable fruits, marketable yield (kg plant−1) and total yield (kg plant−1). None of the parents involved was found to be good general combiner for all the characters studied. Based upon the information obtained from the combining ability components of variation and graphical analyses, it was concluded that yield in tomato can be improved both through pure line breeding as well as through heterosis breeding. Parents viz. X 332, S 285, C 122 and S 284 were identified as good combiners for yield and its component characters. From the present set of crosses, X 332 x I 181 and S 284 x I 181 may be pursued further for isolating high yielding true breeding lines. Two hybrids namely P 254 x S 285 and S 284 x I 181 which performed significantly better than the two check hybrids TH 802 and TH 2312 were recommended for commercial exploitation.