New white maize inbred lines show potential for higher grain yield.
Nine white maize inbred lines were crossed to produce 36 F1 crosses, which were then evaluated for combining ability and genetic parameters. Significant differences were found among the parents and crosses, indicating both additive and non-additive genetic effects. Some parents showed better general combining ability for traits like grain yield, while certain crosses performed well in terms of mean performance and superiority percentage. Broad sense heritability was high for all traits, suggesting strong genetic influence, while narrow sense heritability was lower for grain yield. These results suggest that certain inbred lines could be used in breeding programs to develop higher-yielding maize varieties.