Heterosis studies in bottle gourd [Lagenaria siceraria (Mol.) Standl.]

Experiment with 30 hybrids under line x tester (10 lines and 3 testers) analysis were carried out to estimate the extent of heterosis over mid and better parents for yield and its contributing traits in bottle gourd. Analysis of variance indicated highly significant differences for almost all characters except vine length suggesting presence of wide genetic variability. The heterosis exhibited for fruit characters and fruit yield was mostly positive. The results of present investigation also revealed that the crosses IC-92362 x Pusa Naveen and IC-92462 x Pusa Naveen exhibited high heterosis for yield and also other yield components viz., fruit diameter, vine length and number of branches/plant indicating the additive or synergistic effect of the components characters on fruit yield. Both crosses can be considered as superior among all the 30 cross combinations evaluated. These cross combinations can be utilized for commercial exploitation and determining the strategies for future bottle gourd hybrid development.