Analysis of Combining Ability for Early Maturity and Yield in Rice (Genus: Oryza)‎ at the Kenyan Coast

الملخص EN

The main challenges facing rain-fed rice farming in Kilifi County at the Kenyan coast are inadequate and erratic rainfall, inadequate skills, and poorly developed infrastructure.

Of great importance is erratic rainfall that tends to depress towards the end of long rain season, leading to crop failure.

Combining ability analysis is one of the most valuable tools used to ascertain gene action effects and help in selecting desirable parents for making crosses and coming up with high yielding and early maturing lines.

Combining ability for early maturity and yield has not been studied at the Kenyan coast.

This study aimed at determining and identifying good, general, and specific combiners for selecting better parents and better cross combinations in rice crops for developing high yield and short duration lines in rain-fed rice farming.

Seven lines were subjected to half-diallel mating design at the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO), Mtwapa, and at Bahari in Kilifi town.

Evaluation for general combining ability (GCA) and specific combining ability (SCA) analysis was done.

Combining ability variance and GCA and SCA effects were determined.

Based on GCA effects, best parent for early maturity was Dourado Precoce, while for yield, Supaa, Komboka, and NERICA 10.

SCA estimates indicated that best crosses for yield were D/S, D/N1, and K/N10, while the best performing cross for early maturity was D/N1.