8th INTERNATIONAL WHEAT CONFERENCE

moRPhoLogICAL ChARACTeRIzATIoN ANd PReLImINARy
quALITy ANALySIS of LoCAL WheAT VARIeTIeS fRom
The CANARy ISLANdS
D. Afonso 1 , D. Ríos 1 , C. Royo 2
1 Centro de Conservación de la Biodiversidad Agrícola de Tenerife. Carretera Tacoronte –
Tejina, 20-A, 38350 Tacoronte. Tenerife. Canary Island. Spain
2 Cereal Breeding, IRTA, Rovira Roure, 191, 25198 Lleida, Spain
E-mail Address of presenting author: desireeam@tenerife.es
Traditional wheat varieties are still grown in the Canary Islands. The morphological characterization
of 50 accessions of local bread and durum wheat cultivars showed a great
variability for the studied traits. High plant height, a significant grain yield and the use
of straw for livestock explain the preference of farmers for traditional cultivars instead of
modern varieties. Preliminary quality analysis of 39 local accessions revealed test weight,
protein content and falling number values within the official quality boundaries for both
bread and durum wheat. Other traits, such as SDS-sedimentation, grain vitreousness and
dough rheological properties highlight the potential of some of the studied varieties for
manufacturing quality products contributing to the conservation of the cereal agro-ecosystems
of the islands.
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