Assessment of drought resistance in 20 accessions of Triticum aestivum L. and related species. II. Stability in yield components

Abstract

Stability in yield components was estimated in several species of Triticum grown across a range of soil moisture. The aim was to assess the effect of varying soil moisture on mechanisms leading to grain yield stability, particularly in the accessions identified as having stable yields and drought resistance viz., T. sphaerococcum, T. vavilovii and T. aestivum cv. C 306 (Paper I of this series). The study indicated that number of grains per spike provided stability to the accessions of T. sphaerococcum and T. vavilovii whereas number of spikes per unit area contributed towards the stability of T. aestivum cv. C 306. It is suggested that these accessions could be utilized as the genetic sources for improving specific yield components with regard to grain yield stability under droughted conditions.