Heterosis, Correlations and Path Analysis of Grain Yield Components in Bread Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Abstract

Seven genotypes of bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) were used (SK 95, Side14, Side 12, SK94, Giemiza 9, Giemiza 7, Al-Fayyad) and their 21 crosses from half diallel crosses, and they were planted at the Agricultural Research and Experiment Station of the Faculty of Agriculture. Agriculture - University of Kirkuk, using a randomized complete block design with three replicates in order to study the hybrid vigor, the genetic and phenotypic correlation, and the path analysis of the grain yield components. It is noted from the results that the hybrid 2*6 had the heterosis deviation from the average of the  parents and the best of them are significant and in the desired direction in the number of active tillers plant-1, the number of grains spikes-1 and grain yield, and the genetic and phenotypic correlation was positive for the significant number of active tillers plant-1, the number of spikelet's spike-1 and the number of grain spike-1, and significant positive for the weight of 1000 grains with the grains yield plant-1, and the highest genetic and phenotypic correlation value of the number of  grains spike-1 was 0.8** and 0.785**, respectively with grain yield, and when the correlations were divided into direct and indirect effects, the number of grains spikes-1 had the highest direct effect, which confirms the possibility of adopting it as a selective indicator to improve grain yield.

Keywords

• heterosis
• correlations
• path analysis
• bread wheat