Genotypes and environments interaction and its implication in gain with wheat selection

The objective of this work was to quantify the component of the genotypes x environments interaction, as well as to evaluate its reflexes on the genetic progress with different selection criteria for those wheat lines adapted to the Brazilian midland conditions. Two hundred and forty F2:4 families descending from eight segregant populations of wheat were evaluated. Experiments were conducted under field conditions, and sowings were accomplished in the summer and winter, 2004. The lattice design was used with two replicates. The following characters were evaluated: earing, plant height, grain weight, and grain yield. Decomposition of the genotypes x environments interaction was performed, and the gains with selection in both environments were estimated. The determination of the tolerance level to the heat was based on two indexes. The percentage of the complex-nature interaction was higher than the simple one, whereas the gains with indirect selection in an environment were not efficient, mainly for grain yield. Although the genotypes x environments interaction, use of the tolerance index to the heat based on regression allows detecting the productive genotypes under heat stress by the improvement of the genotype adaptability to this environment, without changing these genotypes' behavior under favorable conditions.

Triticum aestivum; genetic gains; selection criterion; adaptability