The objective of this study was to investigate general and specific combining
ability, degree of dominance (potence ratio). heterosis and inbreeding depression
for yield and its components, in six parents diallel crosses. The bread wheat
genotypes were three newly released cuitivars, Sakha 94, Gemmeiza 10 and Giza
1?0 and Line 5, Line 42, and Line 23. All traits exhibited predomination of non-
additive gene action through low ratios of
GCA f SCA except 100 kernel weight. The best two combiners were one of
the newly released cultivars, (Gemmeiza 10) for grain yield, , number of spikes 1'
plant, number of kernels l spike, 100 kernel weight, and plant height, and one
promising line;(Line 5) for number of spikes f plant, 100 kernel weight and plant
height.
The best promising crosses to utilize non-additive gene action were five, i.e.
PixPs, nP5, nP3, PaxPs and P4NP5 for grain yield f plant and at least one of yield
components. Potence ratio showed different degrees of dominance in different
directions, but averaged positively overdominance for all characters, except 100
kernel weight which gave negative average. Significantly positive heterosis were
recorded for all the characters, ranging within (303-1809 % ) for tallness, ( 7.59-
64.09 % ) for number of spikes f plant, ( 6.19 - 25.23 % ) for number of kernels !
spike , (22.64 437.95 % ) for grain yield f plant, (41.30 - 114.63 % ) for total plant
weight, and ( 15.41 % ) for 100 Kernel weight.
The study could relate heterosis to non~additive gene effect as main effects
or epistasis utilizing such effects.
All these figures reflected the overdominance recorded for all the characters
through potence ratio. On the other hand, all characters express considerable
inbreeding depression in F2 population ranging within (7-18 %) for plant height, as
compared to (14 - 4B % ), (13 - 39 % ), (14 -22 % ), ( 23 - 62 % ), and ( 22 54 %)
for number of spikes, number of kernels, 100 kernel weight, plant grain yield and
total plant weight, respectively.