Grain weight predictors in wheat and the prospects of their utilization in different production environments.

Prospect of grain weight improvement in bread wheat has been reviewed by analysing 30-year data of the released and pre-released varieties evaluated in India during 1992–2021 under 10 diverse environments in five zones under timely and late sown conditions. The study reveals that enlargement of the reproductive phase by early heading and late maturity is feasible only in the environments where vegetative phase is large. This strategy of grain weight improvement can be effective in the northern hills of India for both timely sown (second fortnight of October) and late sown (first fortnight of December) wheat and it causes no reduction in the yield. This approach is also applicable in the agro-ecologies highly congenial for wheat growth as noticed in timely sown wheat varieties of western Indo-Gangetic plains. In areas where crop duration is short due to warmer climatic conditions like central and peninsular India, early heading can be effective for increasing grain weight, but it affects yield. Besides phenology, height can also be crucial in certain environments as it is closely related with grain weight in timely sown wheat of eastern as well as western Indo-Gangetic plains and late sown wheat of the northern hills. Height can also enhance the effect of phenological attributes in some environments. Under late heat-stressed environments, none of these parameters can be helpful in grain weight improvement. The study suggests that simultaneous improvement in grain weight and grain yield of wheat by the adoption of these predictors individually or in combination is possible in certain agro-ecologies of India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]