Abstract

Panicum maximum Jacq.. the most common of the irrigated grasses was introduced from New Guinea several years back. Strains of this grass possessing specific attributes related to fodder production have been developed in Porto Rico, Brazil, Queensland, Trinidad and Jamaica (Jacobson. 1914; White, 1938; Warmke, 1951 and Motta, 1953). Clones with chromosome numbers as 18, 32. 36, 44 and 48 (2n) have been reported (Moffett and Hurcombe, 1949: Dewet, 1954; Warmke, 1954; Piennar, 1955; Raman et al 1959). Taking advantage of the variability noticed in 51 accessions of this species, assembled under the auspices of the scheme on cytogenetics of fodder grasses sponsored by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research and the State Government, detailed studies were undertaken on the morphological and quantitative attri- butes related to fodder production. Selected clones were also compared in yield tests to isolate superior ones. A comparison of the selfed progenies with those raised from open-pollinated seed was also made. The results of the investigations outlined above are described in this paper.

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