Floral biology of CMS lines in chilli

Cytoplasmic Male sterility (CMS) is increasingly utilized for hybrid seed production of chilli (Capsicum annuum L.). Eight CMS and eight maintainer lines were studied for different morphological characters and pollen sterility. The CMS lines viz., AVPP0711S, AVPP0709S, AVPP0710S, AVPP0309S and AVPP0310S were found to be most sterile. It has been concluded that wide range of genetic variability existed for the different floral biological and morphological characters which could be utilized for systematic exploration in chilli improvement programme through hybridization. Improvement programme would greatly benefit from the knowledge of floral biology gained during the present investigation.