Heterosis and combining ability analysis for fruit traits in melon (Cucumis melo L.) involving male sterile and snapmelon lines

Abstract

Ten melon accessions including eight resistant lines involving one snapmelon line (Cucumismelo var. momordica) and two susceptible lines with one genetic male sterile line were crossed to generate 45 F1?s through half-diallel design. These genotypes were evaluated for yield, quality and disease resistance traits in randomized block design with three replication. Pooled ANOVA for experimental design revealed significant mean squares due to environments except for ?-carotene and TSS of juice and, treatment ? environment except for fruit shape index and TSS of juice. The GCA estimates showed that parents Punjab Sunehri was a good combiner for seed cavity area (-8.80), flesh thickness (0.12), rind thickness (0.42), firmness (0.61), dry matter (1.02) and ? carotene (0.80) while SM-2012-12 for fruit yield (4.74), number of fruits vine-1(3.43), average fruit weight (0.06) and fusarium wilt incidence (-0.51) whereas, KP4HM-15 was good for average fruit weight (0.01), days tofirst fruit ripening (-2.31), TSS (1.21), pH (0.13), titrable acidity (-3.13), ascorbic acid content (5.89) and ?-carotene (0.06). The heterobeltosis ranged from -87.2 to 927.08% for the yield and quality traits whereas for fusarium wilt incidence has -100 to 69.23%.The study offers an opportunity for transferring fusarium wilt incidence into superior horticultural genotype. Hybrids KP4HM-15 ? Kajri Sel. 1, Kajri Sel.1 ? MM-202 and MM-314 ? KP4HM-15 were identified as promising on the basis of phenotypic performance, SCA effects and resistance to fusarium wilt disease. These hybrids can be evaluated further at multilocation to assess their suitability for commercial release.