8th INTERNATIONAL WHEAT CONFERENCE

We have also developed guard-varieties – alternative varieties Lastochka and Afina which
are capable of producing relatively high yields of good quality grain when sown both in
autumn and in spring.
Increasing of the number of genetically distinct varieties and their environmental specialization
expand the adaptive potential of the crop and makes its production more reliable
and stable.
Our future strategy involves further differentiation of breeding programs, their isolation
to a certain extent together with integration of the developed material, which helps to
speed up progress. Only through developing varieties with wide adaptive ability and at
the same time specifically resistant to certain environmental conditions can we manipulate
the level of expression of the selected traits. This can be achieved due to allocation
of most important traits which pre-determine grain yield and quality in certain environmental
condition. Thus, for example, at high nutrition level the predominating traits
would be high yielding potential, good response to mineral nutrition, resistance to diseases
and lodging; at late sowing dates the varieties must be able to maintain yielding
level due to high compensation ability. High levels of winter- and frost-hardiness is most
important at strong low-temperature stresses, drought-caused maldevelopment of plants
in autumn-winter period, disbalance of mineral nutrition. An effective system of biologically
and genetically different varieties will help to further increase and stabilize yielding
level and total grain yields in our region.
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