Genotype Environment Interaction for Sugar-Related Traits in Sugarcane Mapping Population

Abstract

Genotype × environment (G × E) interaction plays a key role for better genetic improvement and identifies high yielding and stable cultivars under varying environmental conditions. Genetically stable traits play a key role in sugarcane breeding for improvement in sugarcane and sugar productivity. Present finding elucidates the relative magnitude of G × E interaction effects and evaluating phenotypic stability of 226 segregating genotypes for sugar and yield-related traits and for their regression coefficient (bi) and population mean (X ̅) over the locations. G × E interaction was found significant for cane yield, indicating that the cane yield was highly influenced by the environment. Out of 226 progenies studied, 19 genotypes were found stable for sugar yield-related traits. Seventy genotypes were found stable for quality traits across both the environments, indicating the promising nature of these genotypes. This study indicates that maximum progenies are influenced by G × E interactions and minimum genotypes are stable across both environments for all traits. These findings would be informative for the selection of elite and stable genotypes within the single environment as well across the environments, to achieve the higher cane yield as well as other economic traits. Hence, G × E interaction could increase the efficiency of selection of stable genotypes for different agro-climatic regions.