Inheritance of resistance to verticillium wilt (Verticillium dahliae Kleb.) disease, earliness, yield and quality parameters in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.)

This study was carried out to investigate the genetical behavior, evaluate hybrid vigor in the F1 generation, determinate the suitable parents and their hybrid combination for studied characteristics in the population of 6 cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) genotypes (VD-4, PAUM-15, Çukurova 1518, VD-18, Stoneville 468, Nazilli 84S) which distinguished by different characteristics, obtained by the half-diallel mating design, in the years of 2008-2009.In the population, results showed that heterosis was mostly non-affirmative for fiber fineness; on the other hand, other inspected characteristics were mostly affirmative; heterobeltiosis were mostly affirmative for number of sympodial branches, seed cotton yield, disease index, fiber length, fiber strength and fiber consistency index; on the contrary, for other inspected characteristics were non-affirmative.According to the ratio of general combining ability variance to specific combining ability variance, plant height, number of sympodial branches, boll number per plant, nod number per plant, seed cotton weight per boll, 100 seed weight, earliness rate, ginning percentage, disease index, fiber length, fiber strength, fiber fineness and fiber consistency index characteristics were influenced by additive gene effects; on the other hand, number of monopodial branches and seed cotton yield characteristics were influenced by non-additive gene effects.From the inspected 15 characteristics, 10 for VD-4 x Stoneville 468; 9 for Stoneville 468 x Nazilli 84S and PAUM-15 x Nazilli 84S; 8 for VD-4 x Çukurova 1518; 7 for VD-18 x Stoneville 468 and Çukurova 1518 x Nazilli 84S demonstrated affirmative specific combining ability effects, heterosis and heterobeltiosis. Therefore, these hybrid combinations can be used for the future studies as most promising hybrid combinations to develop all these characteristics together.