Mukhitov L.А., Timoshenkova Т.А.
MORPHOLOGICAL FEATURES OF TRITICUM DURUM VARIETIES IN THE CONDITIONS OF ORENBURG CIS-URAL STEPPE ^{[№ 10 ' 2015]}
Arid conditions are rather usual and frequent for Orenburg Cis-Ural steppes. The drought impacts negatively the processes of wheat growth. This scientific work highlights peculiarities of morphological features of differently originated varieties of spring durum wheat. In different years stable ears produce the following varieties: Bezenchukskaya 205, Bezenchukskaya stepnaya (or Bezenchukskaya of steppe), Gordeiforme 1683, Orenburgskaya 21, Kharkovskaya 3 and Kharkovskaya 23. Several varieties are marked by big length of a stem under the conditions of insufficient moistening and high temperatures of environment. They are Bezenchukskaya 205, Gordeiforme 1683, Orenburgskaya tselinnaya (or Orenburgskaya of virgin lands), Kharkovskaya 3, Kharkovskaya 23 and Tselinnaya 2 (or of virgin lands 2). It means that the varieties mentioned above are higher drought-resistant. They showed lower depression of growth processes. Numerous tests revealed strong interrelation of morphological features and productivity. Productivity increase with growing of ear length, stem length and upper internode length is observed up to a certain point, and then comes decrease of productivity. Optimum parameters of ear length for hard wheat are 7.5–7.7 cm; of stem length — 110–114 cm and of upper internode length — 52–55 cm. These values help to obtain high crop productivity in the mentioned conditions of the region. Optimal rate of stem length and ear length for the central part of the Orenburg region is about 17.7–18.2 units. The highlighted varieties are recommended to be used in the function of parents for being included into selective breeding programs of spring durum wheat under the conditions of the Southern Urals steppes.