Abstract

The P1, P2, F1, F2, BCI and BC2 generations of five pearl millet crosses were studied for six metric traits. The additive dominance model was adequate for plant height, leaf breadth, earhead length and earhead breadth in one cross each. An epistatic digenic model was assumed for other crosses. Heterosis breeding is suggested for improvement of all traits. Duplicate epistasis playes a relatively greater role than complementary epistasis. Among the interactions, dominance X dominance played a major role. Therefore, reciprocal recurrent selection is suggested for development of a superior variety.

Keywords: Genetic Architecture, Pearl millet, Metric Traits