Grain yield and correlated traits of bread wheat lines: Implications for yield improvement

Global wheat yields are suffering due to differences in regional climatic conditions and soil fertility. Plant breeders are continuously working to improve the yield per unit area of wheat crop through selecting superior lines as parents. The screening and field evaluation of available lines allow the selection of supe-rior ones and subsequently improved varieties. Therefore, heritable distinctions among 33 bread wheat lines for yield and related attributes were assessed under field conditions. The experiment included thirty lines and three check varieties. Data relating to different plant characteristics was collected at maturity. Significant differences were recorded for yield and related traits of tested wheat lines and check varieties. Wheat lines V-6, V-12 and V-20 proved better with reduced number of days to reach anthesis and other desir-able traits compared to check varieties. Days to start heading had strong correlation with spike length and number of spikelets spike(-1). Flag leaf area had positive relationship with peduncle length and yield related traits. The 1000-garin weight and grain yield were also correlated with each other. It is concluded that V-6, V-10 and V-20 proved better for all studied traits than the rest of the lines. Therefore, these lines could be used in wheat breeding program as parents to improve yield. (C) 2021 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of King Saud University.

Automated summary

Global wheat yields are being affected by regional climatic conditions and soil fertility. Plant breeders are selecting superior lines to improve yield per unit area, with V-6, V-10, and V-20 showing promising traits for future wheat breeding programs.