ESTIMATION OF HERITABILITY, GENOTYPIC VARIABILITY AND CORRELATIONS ANALYSIS FOR YIELD AND YIELD ATTRIBUTING TRAITS AMONG BREAD WHEAT (Triticum aestivum L.) GENOTYPES

To find out genetic variability, heritability, and trait association among yield and yield-related traits among bread wheat genotypes, an alpha lattice design was used in triplicate manner where 50 wheat genotypes were evaluated at the University of Agriculture Peshawar during rabbi growing season 2021-22 along with a regional check genotype. Data were taken on ten parameters. All the genotypes showed significant variation among them, signifying the possibility of enhancing genetic improvement through breeding programs. Highly significant differences were found in days to heading, days to maturity, plant height, spike length, grain filling duration, number of grains per spike, biological yield and grain yield these traits indicating diversity in yield potential. Moderate to low heritability values were noted for most of the traits. The study exhibits positive correlations for plant height with grain yield, spike length with biological yield, and harvest index with grain yield. On the basis of high heritability and positive correlation of grain yield with other traits, it is recommended that G-41, G-3, G-12, G-37, G-34 and G-14 genotypes which have the potential to be incorporate in further breeding programs.