Maintenance of male sterility in cyto-sterile A lines in safflower

Abstract

Three Cyto-sterile A-lines of safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) and their corresponding B-lines developed at the Directorate of Oilseeds Research, Hyderabad, India were tested for male sterility percent for three contiguous years. Male sterility ranging from 97~99% could be maintained in A•lines by their corresponding B~lines. Sterility was absolute in all male sterile plants. A total of 30 genotypes of C. tinctorius were tested as R~lines for their fertility restoration in the three A-lines. All these genotypes could restore 100% fertility. There was no deleterious effect of sterile cytoplasm of A-lines on test-cross (A x R) progenies. The present investigation demonstrated that A-lines tested were stable in male sterility expression and their corresponding B-lines were effective in maintaining high male sterility percent in A~lines over years.