Received: 19 Sep 2021 Accepted: 23 Nov 2021 Revised: 18 Nov 2021 https://doi.org/10.37992/2021.1204.186 Vol 12(4):1359 - 1366 1359 Electronic Journal of Plant Breeding Research Article Nature of gene action for kernel yield and its component traits in maize (Zea mays L.) N. Sabitha * , D. Mohan Reddy, D. Lokanath Reddy, M. Hemanth Kumar, P. Sudhakar and B. Ravindra Reddy Acharya N. G. Ranga Agricultural University, Department of genetics and plant breeding, S.V. Agricultural college, Tirupati – 517 502, A. P. *E-Mail: nsabitha84@gmail.com Abstract Towards understanding the nature of gene action for kernel yield and its components traits, a set of 45 F 1 hybrids generated by adopting diallel mating design (Method IV and Model I) involving 10 inbred lines were tested across three seasons for their performance and combining ability. Combining ability analysis revealed that the mean sum of squares due to general and specifc combining ability were signifcant indicating the contribution of both additive and non-additive gene action in controlling days to 50% fowering, days to 50% silking, anthesis-silking interval, days to maturity, plant height, SPAD chlorophyll meter reading, specifc leaf area, cob length, cob girth, number of kernel rows per cob, number of kernels per row, 100 kernel weight, harvest index and kernel yield. Estimates of components of variances (σ 2 GCA and σ 2 SCA) and ratio of σ 2 GCA/σ 2 SCA indicated the predominance of non-additive gene action for all the characters studied. Among the inbred lines, BML 2, DFTY, Heypool and PDM 1474 were found to be the best general combiners across seasons for kernel yield and most of yield components as well as developmental characters. DFTY, Heypool, PDM 1452 and PAM 1474 were identifed as good general combiners for earliness. Among the top 20 best performing hybrids, BML 15 × PDM 1452, BML 15 × PDM 1474 and BML 7 × DFTY were rated as promising hybrids based on their superior performance and sca efects for kernel yield and most of the yield components. These hybrids could be recommended for commercial cultivation after extensive testing in multilocation trials. Key words: Maize, Combing ability analysis, Gene action, Yield components INTRODUCTION Maize is a versatile staple cereal crop with wider genetic variability which can be successfully cultivated in tropical, sub-tropical and temperate agro-climatic conditions. In India, maize is the third most important cereal crop after wheat and rice. It is cultivated in an area of 9.2 million hectares with a production of 21.80 million tones and productivity of 2965 kg per ha primarily during kharif and rabi season (DES, 2020). In Andhra Pradesh, it is grown in an area of 2.77 lakh hectare with a production of 17.77 lakh metric tonnes. The productivity of maize in the state is 6403 kg per ha (DES, 2018). Maize is cultivated round the year under diferent seasons. Cultivation of high yielding and stable hybrids suitable for all the seasons would be a better proposition rather than growing specifc hybrids in diferent seasons. Nature and magnitude of gene action controlling the yield and its component traits are important in understanding the genetic potential of a population. Further, knowledge on the genetic architecture of characters is essential in choosing an appropriate breeding procedure in a given population. The use of inbred lines in generating superior hybrids has become more efective with the increased use of recurrent selection. Combining ability analysis provides information on the identifcation of potential parents which can be used for the development of hybrids and synthetics. The