HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Langer, I. Articles by Bailey, T. B. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Langer, I. Articles by Bailey, T. B. Agricola Articles by Langer, I. Articles by Bailey, T. B.

Production Response and Stability Characteristics of Oat Cultivars Developed in Different Eras¹

Grain yield data for 66 oat cultivars, developed over the past 4 decades in the midwestern U.S., were used to determine whether genetic changes had occurred for mean grain yield, yield response to improving environments (measured via linear regression), and stability of yield (measured via coefficients of determination). The decades were divided into seven periods of cultivar development, and the productivity indexes for the test environments were measured by the means of the yields of two cultivars, ‘Richland’ and ‘Cherokee’, that were grown as longtime checks in all environments. Mean productivity for all cultivars was 9.0% higher than the yield of the checks. This increase occurred in the earliest era (i.e., 1932 to 1942), and no additional increase was detected throughout the 4-decade period. Three-quarters of the new cultivars yielded significantly greater than the checks, and only one yielded significantly less. The mean regression response index ranged from 0.89 to 0.98 for the seven eras, and there was no evident trend for this parameter over time. It is suggested that the oat germplasm of Avena sativa L., originally introduced from northern Europe into the midwestern U.S., may have contained little genetic variability for grain yield. Seemingly, the only times when bursts of yield improvement have been made in cultivated oats have followed introgression of germplasm from other species or ecotypes.

Key Words: Avena sativa L. • Interspecific crosses

² Head, Oseva, Plant Breeding and Seed Production Corp., Dep. of Research and Plant Breeding, Prague, Czechoslovakia.

³ C. F. Curtiss Distinguished Professor in Agriculture, Agronomy Dep., and associate professor, Dep. of Statistics, Iowa State Univ., respectively.

Received for publication March 27, 1978.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				S. J. Edme, J. D. Miller, B. Glaz, P. Y. P. Tai, and J. C. Comstock Genetic Contribution to Yield Gains in the Florida Sugarcane Industry across 33 Years Crop Sci., January 1, 2005; 45(1): 92 - 97. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				I.A. del Blanco, S. Rajaram, and W.E. Kronstad Agronomic Potential of Synthetic Hexaploid Wheat-Derived Populations Crop Sci., May 1, 2001; 41(3): 670 - 676. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]