Improving grain yield, protein ratio and nitrogen use efficiency of durum wheat (Triticum Durum Desf.) hybrids using spad meter as a selection criterion

Abstract

Chlorophyll content can serve as a guide for nitrogen management in agricultural systems. Hence, the investigating leaf chlorophyll in crops could be of benefit to boost production. The present study evaluated 15 different hybrids of durum wheat (Triticum durum Desf.) combinations in F3, F4 and F5 generations for nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), grain yield and protein content using chlorophyll meter index (CCI) under three different nitrogen levels (0, 120 and 240 kg N/ha). The results showed that N levels significantly influenced the grain yield and quality traits of durum wheat genotypes, and accordingly, SPAD readings could be used as an indirect selection criterion in durum wheat breeding to achieve the desired production targets. Genetic correlations among grain yield, CCI, grain nitrogen yield (GNY) and protein were high in F3 generation under high nitrogen regimes. It was also observed that all the generations of Zenit × Menceki, Mersiniye × Menceki, Zenit × Mersiniye, Mersiniye × Spagetti and Spagetti × Menceki crosses have high yield potential and yield stability. It was concluded that the evaluation of the segregation populations at different generations in the same year and selection in the later generations might make a significant contribution to reduce the costs.