Genotype × environment interaction analysis for grain yield of bread-wheat genotypes under drought-prone environments

Abstract

The analysis of genotype × environment interaction (GEI) is crucial for distinguishing the performance of genotypes across different environments. The aim of this study was to investigate the GEI for grain yield in bread wheat and to establish selection criteria to enhance genotype selection and breeding in drought-prone environments. The genotype main effect and GEI effect (GGE) biplots identified three genotypes, 85 (ETW17-377), 82 (ETW17-374), and 13 (ETW17-281), as the best-yielding and most stable. The Kulumsa site, planted on 4 July 2017 (environment 7 = E7), and the DebreZeit site, planted on 20 July 2017 (E3), proved to be the most effective environments for distinguishing the test genotypes. Therefore, these environments are recommended for future evaluation and selection due to their specific adaptation characteristics. The Melkasa site, planted on 4 July (E9), was identified as a representative environment suitable for evaluating genotypes with wide adaptation. The genetic covariate biplot revealed significant positive associations between thousand-kernel weight and plant height with grain yield. This suggests the possibility of concurrent indirect selection of these traits to exploit GEI interaction for improving the yield of bread wheat in drought-prone environments.