Abstract
Durum wheat performance in the Mediterranean climate is limited when water scarcity occurs before and during anthesis. The present research was performed to determine the effect of drought stress on several physiological and agro-morphological traits in 17 durum wheat genotypes under two conditions (control and drought) over two years. The results of analysis of variance indicated that the various durum wheat genotypes responded differently to drought stress. Drought stress significantly reduced the grain filling period, plant height, peduncle length, number of spikes per plot, number of grains per spike, thousand grains weight, grain yield, biomass, and harvest index in all genotypes compared to the control condition. The heatmap-based correlation analysis indicated that grain yield was positively and significantly associated with phenological characters (days to heading, days to physiological maturity, and grain filling period), as well as number of spikes per plant, biomass, and harvest index under drought conditions. The yield-based drought and susceptible indices revealed that stress tolerance index (STI), geometric mean productivity (GMP), mean productivity (MP), and harmonic mean (HM) were positively and significantly correlated with grain yields in both conditions. Based on the average of the sum of ranks across all indices and a three-dimensional plot, two genotypes (G9 and G12) along with the control variety (G1) were identified as the most tolerant genotypes. Among the investigated genotypes, the new breeding genotype G12 showed a high drought tolerance and yield performance under both conditions. Hence, this genotype can be a candidate for further multi-years and locations test as recommended for cultivation under rainfed conditions in arid and semi-arid regions.
Highlights
Among cereal crops, durum wheat (Triticum durum Desf.) is widely cultivated in the Mediterranean region and other semi-arid areas of the world [1]
The genotype and year interaction was significant for days to heading (DH), days to maturity (DM), grain filling period (GFP), number of spikes per plot (NSPP), stomatal conductance (SC), CT, grain yield (GY), harvest index (HI), and Bio, whereas the genotype and stress interaction was significant for DH, DM, GFP, peduncle length (PL), number of grains per spike (NGPS), NSPP, GY, and Bio
Several studies reported that drought stress reduces Fv/Fm [1,17,29], our results revealed that the process of energy displacement from the antenna chlorophyll complex to the photosystem apparatus II (PSII) may not be affected by drought stress in some of the tested genotypes
Summary
Durum wheat (Triticum durum Desf.) is widely cultivated in the Mediterranean region and other semi-arid areas of the world [1]. It represents an essential food source, as it provides carbohydrates, dietary proteins, fiber, calcium, zinc, fats, and energy [2]. The pattern of biomass allocation is a key growth parameter of an adaptive strategy in plants, especially in drought conditions. It is strictly associated with the size and morphological construction of crop organs [6]. The important physio-chemical responses and parameters for evaluating drought response in wheat include chlorophyll content, stomatal conductance, leaf water potential, photosynthetic rate, and transpiration rate [8]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
