AMMI ANALYSIS FOR STABILITY OF GRAIN YIELD IN PEARL MILLET [Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br. Emend Stuntz]

BHURI SINGH¹*, M.L. JAKHAR², E.V.D. SASTRY³, H.K. MEENA⁴, K.C. SHARMA^5
1Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, S. K. N. College of Agriculture, Jobner, Jaipur, 303 329, Rajasthan, India
²Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, S. K. N. College of Agriculture, Jobner, Jaipur, 303 329, Rajasthan, India
³Division of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Rajasthan Agriculture Research Institute, Durgapura, Jaipur, 302 018, Rajasthan, India
⁴Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, S. K. N. College of Agriculture, Jobner, Jaipur, 303 329, Rajasthan, India
⁵Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, S. K. N. College of Agriculture, Jobner, Jaipur, 303 329, Rajasthan, India
* Corresponding Author : bhurisingh.gpb@gmail.com

Received : 12-08-2015     Accepted : 28-08-2015     Published : 07-11-2015
Volume : 7     Issue : 8       Pages : 610 - 619
Int J Agr Sci 7.8 (2015):610-619

Keywords : AMMI, Pearl millet, G x E interaction, Bi-plot and Stability analysis
Academic Editor : Jehad M. H. Ighbareyeh, K.N. Vadaria, Dr Ivan Tsvetkov
Conflict of Interest : None declared
Acknowledgements/Funding : None declared

Fifty five genotypes (parents and F1’s) of pearl millet were evaluated in three environments. The genotypic expression was influenced by the environments significantly for twelve morphological characters and grain yield per plant. Simple correlations have indicated that harvest index, biological yield per plant, panicle length,dry fodder yield per plant, panicle girth and productive tillers per plant as the main yield component. Stability analysis indicated that high yielders in general had high ‘b’ values indicating their adaptability to normal environment and vice versa. Crosses 41-50 x RIB-20 followed by 31-40 x 101-105, 26-30 x 101-105, 26-30 x 71-75, RIB-20 x 71-75 and 71-75 x RIB-135-144 showed absolute stability for grain yield per plant. AMMI analysis and GGE bi-plot revealed good correspondence between the spread of genotypes and environments for biological yield per plant, panicle length and grain yield per plant. The bi-plot of mean grain yield per plant over the environments and the AMMI 1 scores support this view. Crosses involving parents 41-50, 76-80 and 101-105 were generally stable performers having AMMI 1 scores close to zero. Genotypes (either parents or the crosses) which have AMMI 1 values closer to zero are expected to be stable, thus a genotype which has AMMI 1 values close to zero and has mean higher than the average of the entries is a desirable one. 41-50 x RIB-20 is the stable cross as it fits the above assumption. Some of the other crosses which follow this assumption are 31-40 x 101-105, 26-30 x 71-75, RIB-20 x 71-75 and 71-75 x RIB-135-144 and 26-30 x 101-105.