Document Type

Thesis - Open Access

Award Date

2017

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department / School

Agronomy, Horticulture, and Plant Science

First Advisor

Karl Glover

Keywords

cold tolerance, germination, spring wheat

Abstract

When planted early in the season, hard red spring wheat (HRSW; Triticum aestivum L.) can help for both vegetative growth and yield providing maximum agronomic productivity. The north-central Great Plains growing region is considered best for developing varieties that germinate in sub-optimal temperatures. Within limited regions, spring wheat planting typically occurs between mid-April and late May, when soil temperatures are 8 °C to 14 °C. Early season planting may result in freezing stress, while late season planting can result in heat and drought stress. Our study tested the germination rate of hard red spring wheat (HRSW) over a range of low temperatures within a laboratory environment. Ten HRSW populations were selected and four replications of 100 randomly chosen seeds of each genotype were tested at a series of temperatures (5°C, 7°C, 9°C, 11°C, 13°C, and 15°C). The purpose of this study was to review information on cold temperature germination tolerances for the HRSW populations and develop a recommendation for early season planting of HRSW. As a result of this study, we found out that SD4011/BARLOW showed the highest germination rate at 5°C, whereas SD4330 was recorded as a highest germinating entry at the 5 °C to 15°C temperature range. The importance of this study is to help predict how cooler growing temperatures might affect planting dates and improve crop productivity in anticipation of climate warming which poses a significant threat to area farmers. According to USDA-NRCS, soil temperature data from the EROS Data center for SD five-year averages of soil temperatures showed that between first recorded 5°C and 11°C soil temperatures have approximately two weeks of differences. Planting may be completed up to two weeks earlier if a HRSW cultivar capable of germinating in cooler soils is used.

Library of Congress Subject Headings

Hard red spring wheat -- Varieties.
Hard red spring wheat -- Effect of temperature on.
Germination.

Description

Includes bibliographical references (pages 11-15)

Format

application/pdf

Number of Pages

25

Publisher

South Dakota State University

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Rights Statement

In Copyright