Quantitative analysis of fruit size and fruit number in <i>Solanum aethiopicum</i> group

Abstract

Fruit length and width, fruits per cluster and fruit clusters per plant are components of fruit yield in fruit vegetable. Inheritance studies in scarlet eggplant is limited due to inadequate research, and Solanum aethiopicum in an underutilized crop. The objectives of this study were to evaluate inheritance and genetic action, heritability and heterosis for fruit length and diameter, fruits per cluster and fruit cluster per plant in Solanum aethiopicum Gilo and Shum groups. Six generations (P1, P2, F1, F2, BC1 and BC2) from intra species hybridization were evaluated in a compact family block design with six blocks in three replications. Significant scaling and joint scaling tests for fruits clusters per plant and fruits per clusters indicated inadequacy of additive-dominance model. Additive gene action was important for fruit length and fruit clusters per plant, while dominance gene action moderates inheritance of fruit diameter and fruits per cluster. With dominance gene, hybrid breeding is worthwhile to undertake. The opposite signs of dominance and dominance by dominance digenic interaction for fruit clusters per plant showed a duplicate type of epistasis. Positive heterosis for Absolute Mid Parent Heterosis and Relative Mid Parent Heterosis implied sufficient divergence for fruit length and a platform for genetic improvement. High narrow sense heritability for traits predicts a better effectiveness of selection.