Genetic gain on grain yield, agronomic traits and malting quality of selected barley cultivars in the Western Cape Province, South Africa

This study evaluates the genetic gain in nine barley cultivars released from 2004 to 2020, focusing on agronomic and malting quality traits. Field experiments were conducted in two locations during the 2023 growing season, Caledon and Heidelberg, representing different rainfall conditions. Caledon, a high rainfall area, had the highest grain yield, with Malgas (S20) emerging as the top performer with a yield of 6.17 t/ha and 4.5 t/ha in Heidelberg a low rainfall area. Genetic improvements in ear per meter square were observed in Bitou (S19), which produced 516 ears per meter square despite a lower plant density of 8 plants per meter compared to older cultivars like Nemesia (S04), which produced 416 ears per meter square with a density of 9 plants per meter. Recent cultivars bred at SABBI including Kadie (S16) and Malgas (S20) displayed shorter plant heights at 63 cm compared to older cultivars, Disa (S06) and Agulhas (S09) reaching heights of 73 cm and 75 cm, indicating the incorporation of dwarfism trait. Contrasting trends in total nitrogen content were observed between the locations, with Caledon showing a positive relationship with years of release (y = 0.0088x - 16.167), while Heidelberg exhibited a negative relationship (y = -0.0045x + 10.872). Plumpness consistently improved over time, with Bitou (S19) showing the highest plumpness in both locations (Caledon: 95.82%, Heidelberg: 96.97%). However, significant differences and negative relationships were observed in screenings in both locations (Caledon: y = -0.192x + 390.1, p

本研究评估了自2004年至2020年间发布的九种大麦品种的遗传增益，重点关注其农艺性状和酿酒品质。在2023年生长季节，于两个地点进行了田间试验，分别为凯尔登和海德堡，这两个地点代表了不同的降雨条件。凯尔登，一个高降雨区域，具有最高的籽粒产量，其中Malgas（S20）表现出色，产量达到6.17吨/公顷，而在降雨量较低的海德堡，产量为4.5吨/公顷。在Bitou（S19）中观察到每平方米穗数的遗传改良，尽管其植株密度低于老品种如Nemesia（S04）的9株/平方米，但每平方米产量却达到516穗。近期培育的品种，如SABBI培育的Kadie（S16）和Malgas（S20），其植株高度较老品种Disa（S06）和Agulhas（S09）的73厘米和75厘米有所缩短，仅为63厘米，这表明矮化性状的引入。在两个地点，总氮含量的趋势存在差异，凯尔登显示出与发布年数呈正相关的趋势（y = 0.0088x - 16.167），而海德堡则显示出负相关的趋势（y = -0.0045x + 10.872）。丰满度随时间持续提高，Bitou（S19）在两个地点均表现出最高的丰满度（凯尔登：95.82%，海德堡：96.97%）。然而，在两个地点的筛选试验中均观察到显著差异和负相关关系（凯尔登：y = -0.192x + 390.1，p