Abstract

The phenomenon of hybrid vigour has engaged the attention of plant breeders and geneticists from very early times. In recent years, the utilisation of hybrid vigour or heterosis, for improvement of crop yields has brought forth very valuable results. In naturally cross-pollinated crops, continued inbreeding results in loss of vigour of the progeny and consequent reduction in yields. Hybridisation between the inbred types, in cross-pollinated crops, is usually accompanied by greater vigour in the resulting pro- geny leading to phenomenal increases in yield. This factor, coupled with the ease of hybridisation on a large scale, paved the way for the exploitation of hybrid vigour as a method of maximisation of production in these crops. The results achieved in one of them, maize, have clearly demonstrated the potentialities of this method and have revolutionised corn production in all the corn-growing countries of the world. The remarkable achievements attained in corn production, through the introduction of hybrid strains, have stimulated investigations on similar lines in other cross-pollinated crops. Among Millets, Cumbu has responded remarkably well and the results obtained from preliminary studies, at the Millet Breeding Station, Coimbatore, are briefly presented in this paper.

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