Heterosis Studies in Bitter Gourd for Yield and Related Characters

Abstract

Heterosis breeding is a potential tool to achieve improvement in quantity, quality, and productivity of bitter gourd, which cannot be done through traditional methods. A full diallel mating design was used to study standard heterosis for yield and quality characters in bitter gourd. Evaluation of 90 bitter gourd hybrids, resulting from full diallel mating, of 10 genetically diverse genotypes for earliness, yield, and quality characters indicated the presence of heterotic vigor. The hybrid ‘CO-1’ × ‘MC-105’ had negative relative standard heterosis for the node at which the first female flower appears. Heterosis for sex ratio was in the desired direction in ‘UB’ × ‘GL’. The highest positive, and significant, standard heterosis was in the hybrid ‘CO-1’ × ‘MC-105’ for fruit length. Estimates of standard heterosis for fruit yield indicated that the hybrid ‘Preethi’ × ‘MC-30’ had the highest positive value followed by the hybrid ‘KR’ × ‘USL’. In order of merit, the hybrids ‘Preethi’ × ‘MC-30’, ‘KR’ × ‘USL’, ‘MC-105’ × ‘MC-10’, and ‘Priyanka’ × ‘CO-1’ were the best performers with respect to yield and quality. These hybrids had high heterosis for most component traits, can be used for exploitation of heterosis, and can likely be released as hybrids after field testing.