Classification of Wheat (Triticum aestivum) Cultivars for Iron Efficiency Under Western India Conditions

Abstract

Globally, iron (Fe) deficiency is the fifth most prevalent micronutrient disorder and remains a major public health concern. About 12.6% of Indian soils are deficient in Fe and its limited availability to crops posing severe threat to the productivity and nutritional quality of the harvest in several Indian states. Agronomic manipulation is inexpensive, simple approach to enrich genetically inefficient cultivars by application of micronutrient fertilizers at different rates, methods and across varied crop growth stages. Hence, present study aimed to categorize Fe efficient genotypes with high yield as well as enhanced Fe uptake in wheat grain. Field experiments were conducted during rabi 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons in Fe deficient soil to assess the Fe efficiency of twenty (20) wheat cultivars (Triticum aestivum L.) at Anand, (middle Gujarat agro-climatic zone-III) India. The experiment was laid out in Factorial Randomized Block Design (RBD) with two Fe levels (as FeSO₄.7H₂O fertilizer) treatments viz., Control (without Fe) and 50 kg ferrous sulphate per hectare as soil application with two foliar sprays of 0.5% ferrous sulphate at 45–50 DAS and 75–80 DAS of wheat. Different genotypes significantly differed in their response to applied Fe. Two year results confirmed that the grain yield of genotypes under control ranged from 3658 to 5469 kg ha^-1 with an average value of 4699 kg ha^-1. The wheat grain yield of different genotypes treated with Fe varied from 4107 to 6304 kg ha^-1 with an average yield of 5455 kg ha^-1. The grain Fe concentration increased from 6.4 to 28.6% among different genotypes. The genotypes were classified on the basis of grain yield and Fe efficiency and grouped as efficient and responsive (GW 496, GAW 16–16, GW 451), efficient and nonresponsive (HI 1544, GW 513, LOK 1), inefficient and responsive (GW 514, GAW 16 − 07) and inefficient and non-responsive (GW 495, GAW 16 − 10). Hence, growing Fe efficient wheat genotypes with high yield and Fe in grain at low Fe supply would be a sustainable approach to ameliorate Fe micronutrient malnutrition and higher crop production in western part of India.