HETEROSIS, COMBINING ABILITY AND STABILITY ANALYSIS IN PEARL MILLET (PENNISETUM GLAUCUM (L.) R. BR.): A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW

Abstract

Pearl millet is an important climate-resilient cereal widely cultivated in semi-arid regions. The present review synthesizes findings on heterosis, combining ability and stability analysis based on multi-environment evaluation of hybrids developed through a Line × Tester design. Significant genetic variability was observed across environments, with analysis of variance revealing strong genotype and genotype × environment interaction effects for grain yield and associated traits. Several hybrids exhibited substantial positive heterosis over better parent and standard checks, indicating the predominance of non-additive gene action. Combining ability analysis identified promising CMS and restorer lines with desirable general combining ability effects, while specific cross combinations showed high specific combining ability for yield. Stability parameters and AMMI analysis facilitated identification of broadly adapted and specifically adapted hybrids. The integration of heterosis estimation, combining ability analysis and multi-location stability testing provides a robust framework for accelerating pearl millet hybrid breeding under semi-arid conditions.