Evaluation and identification of superior sorghum recombinant inbred lines for agronomic, shoot fly resistance, quality and fodder yield traits

Introduction

Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench) is an important cereal and fodder crop cultivated across environments where biotic stresses frequently constrain productivity. Shoot fly (Atherigona soccata) is an important sorghum pest, making the identification of resistant and productive genetic resources a key component of breeding programmes. Recombinant inbred lines provide stable genetic material for assessing variation and identifying promising genotypes. Evaluating a segregating population across agronomic, resistance, quality, and fodder-yield traits allows breeders to identify lines with desirable performance for specific breeding objectives. This investigation aimed to characterize variation among sorghum RILs, compare mean performance for 18 traits, assess the significance of variation through analysis of variance, and identify RILs superior to the superior check for individual desirable traits. Sorghum improvement depends on identifying and using variability for agronomic and fodder-yield traits. Recent evaluations of sorghum germplasm and forage materials have reported substantial variation for plant height, leaf traits, green and dry fodder yield, and related yield components, highlighting the scope for identifying superior genotypes through systematic phenotypic evaluation (Gebregergs et al., 2020; Santosh et al., 2024) [1,2] . This variability is particularly relevant in breeding populations, where selecting lines with desirable agronomic and productivity traits can provide useful material for further breeding. Shoot fly (Atherigona soccata Rondani) is a major constraint on sorghum production, particularly during the seedling stage, and can substantially reduce crop productivity. Recent research has documented considerable differences among sorghum genotypes for shoot fly infestation and associated resistance traits. Seedling morphophysiological and biochemical characteristics influence shoot fly preference and damage, and recent reviews emphasize the importance of host-plant resistance in reducing shoot fly-associated yield losses (Kumari et al., 2021; Arora et al., 2025) [3,4] . Evaluation of segregating populations for oviposition and dead-heart incidence therefore remains important for identifying lines with improved resistance. Fodder productivity is an important breeding objective in sorghum because of its value as livestock feed. Studies have identified green fodder yield, dry fodder yield, plant height and leaf-related traits as important components of forage performance (Santosh et al., 2024; Kumari et al., 2024) [2,5] . Accordingly, simultane ous evaluation of agronomic traits, shoot fly resistance, and fodder yield can help identify promising RILs with desirable trait combinations for subsequent breeding and validation.

Materials and Methods

Experimental material and site

Experimental design and crop management

The 210 RILs and six checks were evaluated in an augmented block design with three replications during the kharif season of 2018. The RILs were distributed among the blocks, while the six checks were repeated across replications. The experiment followed standard recommended crop-management practices for sorghum. Observations were recorded for 18 traits, comprising days to emergence, seedling height, egg-laying percentage, oviposition, dead-heart incidence at 14, 21 and 28 days after emergence (DAE), days to 50% flowering, plant height, stem diameter, number of nodes, leaf length, leaf width, HCN content, total soluble solids (TSS), thousand-grain weight, dry fodder yield and green fodder yield

Trait measurement

Data were recorded for 18 agronomic, shoot fly resistance and quality traits. Days to emergence and days to 50% flowering were recorded on a plot basis. At the same time, seedling height, plant height, stem diameter, number of nodes, leaf length and leaf width were measured from representative plants following standard sorghum descriptors. Shoot fly infestation was assessed during the seedling stage by recording egg incidence/egg-laying percentage, oviposition and deadheart incidence. Egg incidence was expressed as the percentage of plants bearing shoot fly eggs, while oviposition was recorded as the number of eggs observed on the sampled plants. Dead-heart incidence was calculated at 14, 21 and 28 days after emergence (DAE) as the percentage of plants showing dead-heart symptoms among the total plants examined. We used similar procedures to phenotype sorghum shoot fly resistance.

At harvest, green fodder yield (GFY) was recorded as the fresh weight of fodder obtained from the sampled plants/plot and expressed on a per-plant basis, while dry fodder yield (DFY) was determined after drying the harvested fodder to a constant weight. Thousand-grain weight (TGW) was recorded from a representative grain sample and expressed in grams. Hydrocyanic acid potential (HCN) was estimated in ppm following the method of Hogg and Ahlagreen (1942), based on enzymatic release of HCN from cyanogenic plant tissue. Total soluble solids (TSS) were measured using a hand refractometer and expressed as a percentage.

Statistical analysis

Analysis of variance was performed for the augmented design following (Federer) [6] . Mean performance, range, standard error, and critical difference (CD) at the 5% level were used to characterize variation and identify RILs superior to the superior check.

Results

Mean performance and range of variation

The 210 RILs displayed substantial variation across phenological, morphological, biochemical, shoot fly resistance and fodder-yield traits. Days to emergence ranged from 2 to 12 days, seedling height from 3.29 to 17.25 cm, days to 50 per cent flowering from 46 to 97 days, thousand-grain weight from 4.33 to 40.86 g, dry fodder yield from 22.01 to 172.55 g plant -1 and green fodder yield from 56.28 to 561.52 g plant -1 .

Superior RILs for individual traits

SFRIL380 showed lower egg percentage. SFRIL346, SFRIL16, SFRIL43, SFRIL258 and SFRIL12 were identified as superior for earliness. SFRIL126, SFRIL302, SFRIL143, SFRIL20 and SFRIL332 showed higher stem diameter, while SFRIL15, SFRIL185, SFRIL281, SFRIL19 and SFRIL45 showed higher number of nodes. SFRIL273, SFRIL253, SFRIL330, SFRIL261 and SFRIL220 were superior for leaf length; SFRIL129, SFRIL188, SFRIL315, SFRIL261 and SFRIL205 for leaf width; SFRIL18, SFRIL82, SFRIL200, SFRIL314 and SFRIL374 for TSS; and SFRIL245, SFRIL257, SFRIL144, SFRIL129 and SFRIL359 for thousand-grain weight.

For fodder yield, SFRIL20, SFRIL4, SFRIL97, SFRIL15 and SFRIL21 were identified for higher dry fodder yield, whereas SFRIL20, SFRIL21, SFRIL22, SFRIL4 and SFRIL329 were identified for higher green fodder yield.

Analysis of variance

Analysis of variance showed highly significant differences among RILs for seedling height, days to 50 per cent flowering, plant height, stem diameter, number of nodes, leaf length, leaf width, thousandgrain weight, dry fodder yield and green fodder yield. Significant differences were observed for oviposition and dead heart percentage at 21 days after emergence.

Discussion

The RIL population exhibited considerable variation for several agronomic traits, as reflected by significant differences in the analysis of variance. Variation in days to 50% flowering provides an opportunity to identify lines with different phenological adaptations. At the same time, differences in plant height, stem diameter, number of nodes, leaf length, and leaf width indicate variation in plant architecture. Such variation is important for sorghum improvement because plant stature and leaf development influence biomass production and canopy development. Similar variation in plant architectural traits has been reported in recombinant inbred populations of cereals (Pan et al., 2017) [7] . Variation in flowering time is particularly relevant for selecting lines suited to specific production environments. Early flowering may be advantageous where shorter crop duration is desired, whereas relatively later flowering may favour greater vegetative biomass accumulation. The observed variation in plant height, stem diameter and leaf dimensions therefore provides opportunities to select plant types according to specific breeding objectives. Quantitative variation for flowering and architectural traits has also been reported in segregating populations (Buckler et al., 2009; Worede et al., 2020) [8,9] . [10,11] . Identifying lines that combine favourable shoot fly resistance with desirable agronomic characteristics can therefore provide useful material for further breeding and evaluation. We also observed considerable variation in quality-and yield-related traits, including HCN, TSS, thousand-grain weight, dry fodder yield, and green fodder yield. Variation in TSS and HCN is relevant to forage quality, whereas differences in dry and green fodder yield indicate opportunities for improving biomass productivity. Previous evaluations of sorghum populations have shown variation in morphological traits associated with fodder production and resistance to insect pests (Rohila et al., 2020) [12] . The present findings therefore support identifying RILs that combine desirable fodder productivity with favourable agronomic and shoot fly-resistance characteristics. Overall, the significant variation detected among the RILs and the identification of lines superior to the checks for individual traits demonstrate the usefulness of this population for selection. Lines showing desirable combinations of fodder yield, plant architecture, phenology and shoot fly resistance may provide promising material for subsequent evaluation and breeding.

Conclusion

The evaluation of 210 sorghum RILs demonstrated substantial variation for agronomic, shoot fly resistance, quality and fodder-yield traits. Analysis of variance confirmed significant differences for several important traits, and several RILs exhibited superior performance for individual breeding objectives. These lines represent useful genetic resources for further evaluation and utilization in sorghum improvement programmes.

Acknowledgement

AcknowledgmentsThe authors gratefully acknowledge the support and facilities provided by the Director, Experiment Station, Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology (GBPUAT), Pantnagar, Uttarakhand, India, and the Indian Institute of Millets Research (IIMR), Hyderabad, India.

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13. How to cite this article: Bhatt B, Pandey P, Tripathi T, Nidhi. Evaluation and identification of superior sorghum recombinant inbred lines for agronomic, shoot fly resistance, quality and fodder yield traits. International Journal of Biology Sciences. 2026;8(9):137-141. doi: https://www.doi.org/10.33545/2664992