Archives of Current Research International

Information regarding the nature of gene action controlling the yield and its related traits is crucial for designing an effective breeding strategy. With this aim, a study was carried out to assess the genetic control and variation among lines and testers for seedling attributes in mulberry. The percentage contribution of testers, lines and their interactions to the total variation indicated that the female parents (lines) contributed more to the overall variability than the male parents (testers) for all traits. The variation due to lines was statistically significant for germination rate, seedling height at 60 and 90 days after sowing (DAS), branch number and internodal length, but not significant for the remaining traits. On the other hand, the variance attributed to testers was significant for germination rate and internodal length, but not for the other characteristics observed. The interaction effects between lines and testers were highly significant for germination rate, seedling height at 90 DAS, average leaf mass and leaf area, but not significant for plant height at 60 and 120 DAS, branch count and internodal distance. The variance due to hybrid combinations was highly significant for all traits except for internodal length. The study aimed to estimate the extent of general combining ability (GCA), specific combining ability (SCA) variances and determine the mode of gene action controlling these traits. Findings showed that the non-additive gene effects were predominant for most of the growth traits in this study.