Selection of yield-related traits for wheat breeding in semi-arid region

Abstract

Wheat is an important cereal crop and one of the sources of nourishment and energy for humankind. But drought has affected wheat production seriously. This study has focused on wheat yield-related traits and tried to select suitable indexes for wheat breeding in semi-arid region. To this aim, a factorial experiment with two water regimes in field conditions was conducted. We found that the wheat line with higher grain yield also possessed higher spikelet number per spike (SN), 1000-kernel weight (TKW), and grain number per spike (GNPS) and the higher post-anthesis photosynthetic rate (Pn) than the others (P<0.05). The statistical analysis showed that under drought condition the higher grain yield was significantly associated with SN, TKW, GNPS and the higher post-anthesis Pn (P<0.05). Based on our findings, it is concluded that the post-anthesis Pn as physiological index and SN, TKW, and GNPS as agronomic trait are suitable in using selection indicators for wheat breeding in semi-arid region.