Ecology, Environment and Conservation Paper

PATH COEFFICIENT AND CORRELATION ANALYSES OF SOME YIELD ASSOCIATED TRAITS IN FINGERMILLET (ELEUSINE CORACANA (L.) GAERTN.) GERMPLASM

V. Ulaganathan and A. Nirmalakumari

Abstract

The present investigation is aimed to find out the association among yield and its component traits and to sort out the traits that are directly or indirectly contributing towards grain yield in 105 fingermillet genotypes. Character association of the yield and its contributing traits revealed that significant positive association of grain yield per plant with days to 50 per cent flowering, productive tillers per plant, days to maturity, plant height, flag leaf sheath length, thousand grain weight, flag leaf blade length and finger width. Investigation on path coefficient analysis showed productive tillers per plant and days to 50 per cent flowering had medium and positive direct effect on grain yield per plant. The traits such as productive tillers per plant and days to 50 per cent flowering showed positive and significant correlation with grain yield per plant as well as it has medium direct effect on grain yield per plant. Therefore, these two traits are very important components of grain yield and should be given high weightage in any selection process aimed at improving grain yield in fingermillet.