Evaluation of sesame (<em>Sesamum indicum</em> L.) lines to develop a high yielding black seeded sesame variety (ANKSE 3) in Sri Lanka

Sesame, an essential oilseed crop, holds the potential to significantly contribute to foreign exchange earnings in Sri Lanka. Black seeded sesame has high demand among the confectionery industry of the country. To meet this demand, development of high-yielding, black-seeded sesame is a key objective of the sesame breeding program at the Department of Agriculture in Sri Lanka, aiming to overcome the low yield potential of existing varieties. To achieve this, thirtythree sesame accessions collected from different regions of the country were evaluated for morphological and yield traits, and six promising lines were identified for station yield trials. Among them four promising lines were selected and tested in six research stations situated in the Dry and Intermediate zones of Sri Lanka in a Randomized Complete Block Design with three replicates and the yield data were recorded. Further, two promising lines that recorded high yields, were selected, and evaluated in farmer field conditions with the check variety, MI 1. The new candidate line recorded the highest yield of 1430 kg/ha and recorded a higher crude fat percentage (43.4%) and higher oleic/linoleic ratio (greater than 1). The new candidate line, ANKBS 5 is superior to the check variety, MI 1 and the other tested lines and fits well to the cropping pattern of the country. The line was named as “ANKSE 3” and released at the Varietal Releasing Committee in 2021, and it is suitable for general cultivation specially to fulfil the demand of black seeded sesame in Sri Lanka.