Association studies of grain yield and its related traits in diverse S2 populations developed through reciprocal recurrent selection in maize (Zea mays L.)

Abstract

The experiment was conducted at College of Agriculture, University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad during kharif, 2017 to determine the inter-character association in newly developed S2 progenies through reciprocal recurrent selection. Association studies in Population A revealed that, grain yield per hectare was positively and significantly associated with cob length (0.642), hundred seed weight (0.591), plant height (0.569), number of kernels per row (0.397), days to 50 per cent tasseling, ear height, cob girth and number of kernel rows per cob. But days to 50 per cent silking (-0.08) was negatively associated with grain yield per hectare. In case population B Grain yield per hectare was positively and significantly associated with cob girth (0.46), cob length (0.40), number of kernel rows per cob (0.45), hundred seed weight (0.36), days to 50 per cent tasseling, days to 50 per cent silking, plant height, ear height, number of kernels per row and shelling percentage. The brown husk maturity was negatively associated with Grain yield per hectare. The information on correlations among traits remains crucial in improving the efficiency of breeding programs by employing the appropriate selection indices in cultivar or varietal improvement.