Improving spring wheat by combining winter wheat gene pool

Abstract

Introgression of winter wheat genes into the spring wheat has been considered as one of the approaches to overcome the stagnation being realized in wheat yields. In this endeavour, information on the combining ability and the manner in which the crosses should be attempted between these two distinct groups of wheat is highly essential. Therefore, twenty eight F1 progenies developed by crossing 4 winter and 4 spring wheat lines in a half diallel mating design, were evaluated along with their parents. Additive genetic effects were of considerable magnitude for days to heading, spikelets/ear and thousand grain weight. Sappo winter and HS 295 and HD 2380 spring wheat were good general combiners for most of the attributes studied. Crosses Victor/HS 240, NS 879/4/CPAN 1796 and Sappo/CPAN 1796 had significant specific combining ability effects for most of the yield attributes. The study suggested that although general combining ability effects of most winter wheats are average or poor and of spring wheat is good, only appropriate winter x spring crosses in general may give desirable genotypes Whereas, the possibilities of deriving suitable genotype from winter x winter and spring x spring wheat crosses is meager.