Registration of two germplasm lines with improved lint yield and fiber elongation in upland cotton

Abstract

AbstractTwo conventional upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) germplasm lines, NC18‐05 (Reg. no. GP‐1082, PI 697272) and NC18‐06 (Reg. no. GP‐1083, PI 697273), were developed by the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences at North Carolina State University. The lines were bred for fiber elongation within yield‐competitive phenotypes. The two lines were derived from a randomly mated population using multiple parental lines. Both NC18‐05 and NC18‐06 produced equivalent or higher lint than commercial cultivars ‘DP393’, ‘SG747’, and ‘UA48’ during 2 yr in Clayton, NC. Germplasm line NC18‐05 produced 1507.2 kg ha–1 of lint, which was 36.2% higher than DP393 and 29.4% higher than UA48 (p < .05). Germplasm line NC18‐06 produced 1428.6 kg ha–1 of lint, which was 29.1% higher than DP393 and 22.6% higher than UA48 (p < .05). However, neither line yielded more lint per hectare than SG747 or the average of the parental lines (p > .05). Both NC18‐05 and NC18‐06 exhibited equal or higher fiber elongation values (6.0–49.2%) than the commercial cultivar controls. These two lines had higher lint percentages than UA48 (p < .05). NC18‐06 also demonstrated stronger fiber than DP393 and SG747 (p < .05). These two germplasm lines offer breeders a new source of exceptional fiber elongation before break within a high‐yielding background.