Performance of Parents and Hybrids of Pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp.) in terms of Yield and Yield Contributing Characters

Twelve parents were used in the crossing programme to produce 27 hybrids in L×T fashion during kharif 2015-16. In the field conditions, parents and hybrids were planted in Randomized Block Design of three replications and evaluated for the performance in terms of yield and yield contributing characters during kharif 2016-17. Observations were recorded on ten characters viz., plant height, days to 50% flowering, days to maturity, number of primary branches per plant, number of secondary branches per plant, number of pods per plant, number of seeds per pod, 100 seed weight, grain yield per plant and harvest index. It was observed that increase in number of pods per plant directly contributed to increased yield. Among the twenty seven hybrids, ICPA 2039 × ICPL 161, ICPA 2039 × ICPL 90048 and ICPA 2039 × ICPL149 had high grain yield.