Combining Ability Study in Some Genetic Stocks of Bottle Gourd

A study was conducted in bottle gourd to estimate the combining ability for yield and its ten yield related components. Twenty one bottle gourd hybrids generated from 7 ?? 7 diallel cross (excluding reciprocals) along with their seven parents evaluated in a Randomized Block Design with three replication at the Olericulture Division of Horticulture Research Centre, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute, Gazipur, Bangladesh during 2018-19. Analysis of variance revealed highly significant differences among all the F1 hybrid means and their respective seven parental values for all the traits examined. The mean squares of general combining ability (GCA) and specific combining ability (SCA) were also highly significant. SCA genetic variances were greater than GCA. In the present study, high GCA values were found in parents P2, P4, P5 (days to 1st harvest); P1, P2, P7 (fruit length); P3, P6 (fruit diameter); P3, P6 (exocarp thickness); P6 , P1 (TSS); P1 , P3 (branches per plant); P3 , P6 (vine length); P1, P6 (fruits number per plant); P2, P6, P7 (average fruit weight); P1, P2, P6, P7 (yield per plant), which were selected for good combiner for yield and yield contributing characters. Higher SCA values were obtained from cross combinations P2 x P7, P4 x P7 (days to 1st harvest); P4 x P5, P3 x P5 (fruit length); P3 x P6, P2 x P4 (fruit diameter); P1 x P6, P1 x P7 (fruits number per plant); P6 x P7, P4 x P7 (average fruit weight) and P3 x P4, P3 x P5, P4 x P5, P4 x P7 (yield per plant) which may be selected for better commercial hybrids. Predominance of non-additive gene action was recorded in almost all the traits under study. Therefore, most of the important yield and quality traits of bottle gourd can be improved by heterosis breeding by selecting the parents having good specific combining ability for the target trait(s).