Retesting Early Generation Stability of a Japonica Rice Variety 84–15 by Using Allelic Differences of Two Qualitative Traits

Early generation stability of a japonica rice variety, 84-15, was retested by using the allelic differences of two qualitative traits, i.e., glume tip color and waxy endosperm. Results showed that both glume tip color and waxy endosperm segregated in progenies of single F₁ plants derived from two crosses of 84-15/Zi 18 (purple color) and 84-15/Dahuaxiangnuo (waxy). The results denied the conclusion obtained in previous studies that 84-15 had a characteristic of early generation stability. Moreover, it was found that using the coefficient of variation as an indicator of early generation stability was unreasonable by analyzing plant height as an example. Importance of avoiding systematic error in research works was also discussed.