Adaptability of Spring Barley Varieties Bred at FANC of the Northeast

Abstract

The surveys were performed to analyze the adaptive capacity in the spring barley varieties bred at the Rudnitsky Federal Agricultural Science Center of the Northeast (FANC Northeast) for the yield-related traits and the antifungal resistance. The surveys were carried out in Kirov oblast in 2018–2021. Nine in-demand spring barley varieties bred in 1992 to 2021 served as the survey material. Statistical parameters b_i and $S_{i}^{2}$ were assessed with the methods of S.A. Eberhart and W.A. Russell (1966) in the interpretation of V.A. Zykin et al. (1984). The adaptive coefficient (AC) was estimated with the method developed by L.A. Zhivotkova et al. (1994). The individual responses of the analyzed barley varieties to the environments were identified. The most high-yielding variety was the new Boyarin cultivar (5.7 t/ha), while the least-productive variety was the Ecolog cultivar (4.4 t/ha). The Tandem (b_i = 1.32; $S_{i}^{2}$ = 0.27) and Boyarin (b_i = 0.89; $S_{i}^{2}$ = 0.34) cultivars are intensive varieties with a broad reaction norm and a high productive potential. They tend to respond to environment improvement, while they are characterized by ecological instability. Therefore, they should be sown in the most favorable years at the high-level agricultural-system reference. Plasticity and high adaptive capacity are typical for the cultivars Novichok (b_i = 1.22 and $S_{i}^{2}$ = 0.05), Rodnik Prikamya (b_i = 1.10 and $S_{i}^{2}$ = 0.02), and Dobryak (b_i = 1.34 and $S_{i}^{2}$ = 0. 001). They may be sown in more complex agroecological systems, where they can provide maximum economic efficiency at minimum costs. The best immunological status was recorded in cultivars Pamyaty Rodinoy, Dobryak, Boyarin, and new promising lines 52-12 and 94-13. In addition, a reliable (at P ≥ 0.95) negative effect on the components of plant yield performance was recorded only in case of the net blotch occurrence (r = –0.42...–0.73).