Abstract
Shifts in sowing date change the combination of temperature and photoperiod to which durum wheat is exposed, affecting crop phenology and grain yield. Three durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L. var. durum) varieties were field sown at month intervals over a whole year. The number of spikelets on the main culm and the duration of the period of spikelet initiation were recorded. Grain yield, spike number, and mean kernel weight were determined, too. With all sowing dates, plants formed a spike within the main culm and reached the stage of first node detectable. Physiological maturity was achieved only for sowings performed between October and May. Grain yield was highest in November and both yield and yield components were strongly affected by sowing date. The number of spikelets ranged from 11 to 24, according to sowing date and variety. It decreased from November to May in consequence of the shorter initiation period, and we hypothesize that a 12-h-daylength or longer interrupts spikelet initiation. The decrease of spikelet number was the main determinant of yield reduction with the delay of sowing from November to March.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Arduini, I., Masoni, A., Ercoli, L., Mariotti, M. 2006. Grain yield, and dry matter and nitrogen accumulation and remobilization in durum wheat as affected by variety and seeding rate. Eur. J. Agron. 25:309–318.
Baker, C.K., Gallagher, J.N. 1983. The development of winter wheat in the field. 1. Relation between apical development and plant morphology within and between seasons. J. Agric. Sci. 101:327–335.
Brooking, I.R., Jamieson, P.D., Porter, J.R. 1995. The influence of daylength on final leaf number in spring wheat. Field Crops Res. 41:155–165.
Elhani, S., Martos, V., Rharrabti, Y., Royo, C., García del Moral, L.F. 2007. Contribution of main stem and tillers to durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L. var. durum) grain yield and its components grown in Mediterranean environments. Field Crops Res. 103:25–35.
Ewert, F. 1996. Spikelet and floret initiation on tillers of winter triticale and winter wheat in different years and sowing dates. Field Crops Res. 47:155–166.
Fischer, R.A., 2008. The importance of grain or kernel number in wheat: A reply to Sinclair and Jamieson. Field Crops Res. 105:15–21.
Friend, D.J.C. 1965. Ear length and spikelet number of wheat grown at different temperatures and light intensities. Can. J. Bot. 43:345–353.
George, D.W. 1982. The growing point of fall-sown wheat: A useful measure of physiological development. Crop Sci. 22:235–239.
Halse, N.J., Weir, R.N. 1970. Effects of vernalization, photoperiod, and temperature on phenological development and spikelet number of Australian wheat. Aust. J. Agric. Res. 21:383–393.
Hay, R.K.M., Kirby, E.J.M. 1991. Convergence and synchrony — a review of the coordination of development in wheat. Aust. J. Agric. Res. 42:661–700.
Li, C., Cao, W., Dai, T. 2001. Dynamic characteristics of floret primordium development in wheat. Field Crops Res. 71:71–76.
Li, F.M., Wang P., Wang J., Xu, J.Z. 2004. Effects of irrigation before sowing and plastic film mulching on yield and water uptake of spring wheat in semiarid Loess Plateau of China. Agric. Water Manage 67:77–88.
Mahdi, L., Bell, C.J., Ryan, J. 1998. Establishment and yield of wheat (Triticum turgidum L.) after early sowing at various depths in a semi-arid Mediterranean environment. Field Crops Res. 58:187–196.
Masoni, A., Arduini, I., Mariotti, M., Ercoli, L., Bonari, E. 2001. Number of spikelets and leaf appearance rate in durum wheat as affected by temperature, daylength and nitrogen availability. Agricol. Medit. 131:57–65.
McMaster, G.S., Wilhelm, W.W. 1997. Growing degree-days: one equation, two interpretations. Agric. For. Meteorol. 87:291–300.
Miralles, D.J., Katz, S.D., Colloca, A., Slafer, G.A. 1998. Floret development in near isogenic wheat lines differing in plant height. Field Crops Res. 59:21–30.
Miralles, D.J., Ferro, B.C., Slafer, G.A. 2001. Developmental responses to sowing date in wheat, barley and rapeseed. Ann. Bot. 71:211–223.
Motzo, R., Giunta, F. 2007. The effect of breeding on the phenology of Italian durum wheats: from landraces to modern cultivars. Eur. J. Agron. 26:462–470.
Porter, J.R., Gawith, M. 1999. Temperatures and the growth and development of wheat: a review. Eur. J. Agron. 10:23–36.
Rassaa, N., Ben Haj Salah, H., Latiri, K. 2008. Thermal responses of Durum wheat Triticum durum to early water stress. Consequence on leaf and flower development. C. R. Biologies 331:363–371.
Rawson, H.M. 1971. An upper limit for spikelet number per ear in wheat, as controlled by photoperiod. Australian J. Agric. Res. 22:537–546.
Sinclair, T.R., Jamieson, P.D. 2006. Grain number, wheat yield, and bottling beer: An analysis. Field Crops Res. 98:60–67.
Slafer, G.A., Rawson, H.M. 1995. Photoperiod’temperature interactions in contrasting wheat genotypes: Time to heading and final leaf number. Field Crops Res. 44:73–83.
Stern, W.R., Kirby, E.J.M. 1979. Primordium initiation at the shoot apex in four contrasting varieties of spring wheat in response to sowing date. J. Agric. Sci. 93:203–215.
Zadoks, J.C., Chang, T.T., Konzak, C.F. 1974. A decimal code for the growth stages of cereals. Weed Res. 14:415–421.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Communicated by A. Aniol
Rights and permissions
This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.
About this article
Cite this article
Arduini, I., Ercoli, L., Mariotti, M. et al. Sowing date affect spikelet number and grain yield of durum wheat. CEREAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS 37, 469–478 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1556/CRC.37.2009.3.16
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1556/CRC.37.2009.3.16