A Computer Software for the Analysis of the Honeycomb Experimental Designs.

Honeycomb experimental designs are advanced selection designs for efficient evaluation and selection of a large number of single plants. They are capable of evaluating a large number of genetic entries and a large number of replications. The designs minimize the effect of environmental heterogeneity on single plant yields by using a large number of moving replicates. These designs were developed to carry out efficient selection among genetic entries and efficient selection of the most superior plants within the selected entries. Efficient selection among genetic entries is accomplished by using Equation B, which is the product of the line yield index (LYI) used to select for high line yield potential and the coefficient of homeostasis (CH) used to select for stability of performance. Selection of the best plants within the selected entries is accomplished by using Equation A, which is the product of the plant yield index (PYI) used to select for high plant yield potential and the coefficient of homeostasis (CH) of the entry to which the plant belongs. This paper will discuss the development of a JSL (the scripting language of JMP) script for implementing the above Equations used to analyze the honeycomb designs and for providing a visual interface and user-friendly tools to explore the field layout and visualize the designs and the data recorded.