Four field experiments were carried out at two locations in the State of São Paulo, Brazil, under upland and sprinkler irrigation conditions, using a randomized block design, to evaluate 18 dihaploid wheat lines and the cultivars IAC-24 and Anahuac for grain yield, with respect to agronomic characteristics, resistance to leaf rust and other yield components. Under laboratory conditions, the genotypes were analysed for their Al3+ toxicity tolerance in nutrient solutions. The dihaploid lines 11, 12, 14, 17 and 18 derived from the hybrid IAS-63/ALDAN "S"//GLEN/3/IAC-24 , demonstrated a short-plant type, resistance to lodging, early cycle from emergence to flowering as well as from emergence to maturity and tolerance to aluminum toxicity. In addition these lines showed high average productivity in the four experiments. Line 8 was a good genetic source for long spike, while line 15 was good for large number of spikelets per spike. The cultivar Anahuac produced a large number of grains per spike and per spikelet, while lines 10, 11, 13, 15, 16 and 18 had high grain weight. All genotypes were tolerant to aluminum toxicity except line 5. Anahuac cultivar exhibited high Al3+ sensitivity. The technique used to obtain wheat dihaploid lines via anther culture from plants in the F1 generation after a cross, was efficient in originating productive genotypes, with desirable agronomic characteristics and with tolerance to Al3+ toxicity in a short period of time in relation to the traditional method of genetic breeding used at the Instituto Agronomico.
Triticum aestivum; dihaploid line; anther culture; aluminum
