PERFORMANCE AND GENE ACTION FOR SEED AND FIBER YIELDS IN DIALLEL CROSSES OF FLAX UNDER DIFFERENT ENVIRONMENTS

Abstract

This investigation aimed to evaluate the mean performance of eight flax parents and their F1 and F2 hybrids as well as estimating general and specific combining ability, heterosis and heritability in the broad and narrow sense for fiber and yields/plant and their related traits, oil percentage, harvest index and days to maturity in F1 and F2 hybrids. Eight flax genotypes were chosen on basis of their diversity in some agronomic traits to achieve this study, i.e. two new strains; S.2465/1/3 (P1) and S402/1 (P3), five local cultivars; Sakha 6 (P2), Sakha 5 (P4), Giza 11 (P5), Sakha 2 (P6) and Giza 12 (P7) and one of the introduced cultivar Jowhar (P8).