Estimation of heterosis and potence ratio for plant yield in hot pepper

Hot pepper (Capsicum annuum L) is widespread and cultivated for its pungent fruits worldwide and used for fresh consumption or dry powder. The biological material was composed of six hot pepper genotypes, genetically and ecologically differentiated, used as parents and 15 hybrids of half-diallel crosses between these parents. The aim of this research was to estimate the level of heterosis and breeding potential for plant yield of 15 F1 hybrids between six hot pepper parents, in order to identify and select promising crosses for improvement programs of hot pepper. In terms of heterobeltiosis, only the crosses Cs3 x Cayenne (122.81%) and Cs3 x Cs2 (5.02%) showed a higher plant yield than the best parent, with increases between 23.6 and 513 g. For 63.5% of the crosses the inheritance of plant yield was under the control of incomplete dominance, who acts bidirectional. In the crosses: Cs3 x Ar4, Cs2 x Sigaretta bionda and Ar4 x Sigaretta bionda the incomplete dominance acts in the direction of increasing plant yield, while at crosses: Cs3 x Sigaretta bionda, Cs2 x Ico, Cayenne x Sigaretta bionda, Cayenne x Ico, Ar4 x Ico and Sigaretta bionda x Ico, this type of dominance has negative effects on plant yield. The over dominance has been associated with positive alleles in hybrids Cs3 x Cayenne and Cs3 x Cs2, and with negative alleles at Cs 2 x Cayenne, Cs 2 x Ar 4 şi Cayenne x Ar 4 crosses, respectively. In the case of the Cs3 x Ico cross, the dominance effects do not influence the inheritance of this trait. The crosses Cs3 x Ico, Cs3 x Cayenne and Sigaretta bionda x Ico presented the highest breeding potential for plant yield, representing a promising pre-breeding material for improvement of hot pepper yield.