Abstract
Sweet corn (Zea mays var. saccharata L.) is an important vegetable crop valued for its sweetness, tenderness, and nutritional quality. Biofortification with beta-carotene offers an effective strategy to alleviate vitamin A deficiency while maintaining desirable agronomic performance. The present investigation was undertaken to evaluate the performance of eight beta-carotene-rich sweet corn inbred lines across three locations, namely Coimbatore, Vagarai, and Bhavanisagar, during the Rabi 2023 and Summer 2024 seasons. The experiment was conducted in a randomized complete block design with three replications, and observations were recorded on days to tasselling, days to silking, plant height, cob length, cob width, number of kernel rows per cob, number of kernels per row per cob, green cob yield, total soluble solids, and beta-carotene content. Combined analysis of variance revealed significant (P < 0.01) differences among genotypes and genotype × environment interactions for all the studied traits, indicating the existence of substantial genetic variability and differential environmental response. Across seasons and locations, DBT 26 β+ recorded the highest green cob yield (169.00 – 191.00 g) and consistently maintained high total soluble solids indicating its superior yield potential and eating quality. The genotypes DBT 18 β+ (10.50-11.80 µg g-1) as well as DBT 25 β+ (10.00 -10.80 µg g-1) exhibited higher beta-carotene content. The substantial variability observed among the evaluated genotypes for yield, quality, and nutritional traits demonstrates considerable scope for genetic improvement through selection. DBT 18 β+ DBT 25 β+ and DBT 26 β+ emerged as promising genetic resources for the development of high-yielding, beta-carotene-rich sweet corn cultivars with broad adaptation across diverse environments.