The initiation and emergence of the tiller and mainly of the coleoptile tiller were studied to verify the tillering potential of small-grain cereals. The studies were carried out on open air and growth chamber using the wheat genotypes IPF-49865 (mutant uniculm), EMBRAPA-16 and BR-23 (multiculm), the oat genotypes UFRGS-10, and the barley genotype FM-519. The evaluations included the leaf development of the main culm and of the primary tillers, and the initiation of the tillers. The initiation of all tillers primordium, including the coleoptile, occurred sequentially in the first leaves of the plants but the same pattern was not observed for the emergence of the tillers. The coleoptile tiller showed an abnormal behavior. However, in order to occur a synchronized development of the main culm and the tillers it is suggested that genotypes of small-grain cereals which express this tiller should be searched for.
anatomy; morphology; graminae; primordium
