R. U. BHOSALE, P. P. SURANA AND V. B. SHINDE
Department of Agricultural Botany, Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth,Rahuri-413 722 (M. S.), India
Grass Breeding Scheme,Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth,Rahuri-413 722 (M. S.), India
*(e-mail : vbshinde70@gmail.com)
(Received : 5 April 2021; Accepted : 24 June 2021)
SUMMARY
The study involving twenty-eight genotypes of Anjan grass with two checks were evaluated in a Randomized Block Design with two replications at Grass Breeding Scheme, Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth, Rahuri, Dist. Ahmednagar, Maharashtra. Treatment differences were found to be significant for all the characters studied. High estimates of GCV and PCV were observed for traits viz., number of tillers/plant, leaf breadth, spike length and number of spikes per plant. High estimates of heritability (b.s.%) accompanied by high estimates of genetic advance as percentage of mean were observed for the characters namely number of tillers/plant, number of leaves/tiller, leaf length, leaf breadth, spike length, number of spikes/plant, spikelets per spike and green fodder yield. The characters like plant height, number of tillers per plant, leaf length, leaf breadth, spike length, spike breadth, spikelets per spike and dry matter percent showed significant positive genotypic and phenotypic correlations with green fodder yield. Leaf length exhibited high positive direct effect and significant positive genotypic correlation with green forage yield followed by leaf breadth, plant height, number of tillers per plant and spike breadth. The characters spike length, spikelets per spike and dry matter also exhibited high negative direct effects on green fodder yield, however its association with green fodder yield observed to be strong and positive. Thus indicating that emphasis should be given on these characters for green forage improvement in Anjan grass.
Key words:Cenchrus ciliaris, anjan grass, genetic variability, correlation, path coefficients, forage yield