Correlation and Heterosis Studies in various Populations of Indian Mustard (Brassica juncea L. Czern & Coss)

The present study was carried out with six crosses viz. Varuna x Bio-YSR, Rohini x Bio-YSR, RH-8812 x Bio-YSR, Varuna x JMMWR-9348, Rohini x JMMWR-9348 and RH-8812 x JMMWR-9348 with their six generations viz. P1, P2, F1, F2, BC1 and BC2. Considerable amount of variation was envisaged among parents and their different generations for various morphological traits and yield related studies. Seed yield per plant showed significant positive correlation with number of primary branches per plant (0.319), number of secondary branches per plant (0.275), main shoot length (0.347), number of siliqua on main shoot (0.405), siliqua length (0.213), seeds per siliqua (0.268),1000 seed weight (0.203) and oil content (0.319). Heterosis was found significant for the characters like days to flowering, days to maturity, plant height, main shoot length, number of siliquae on main shoot and seeds per siliqua. 7 out of 33 hybrids showed positive and significant heterosis over mid parent, better parent and checks for seed yield per plant. Study of correlation between different agronomic traits can provide a good means to improve yield in Brassica.