Grain yield, yield components and protein content of organic spelt wheat (Triticum speltaL.) grown in different agro-ecological conditions of northern Serbia

Abstract

Spelt wheat (Triticum spelta L.) is regarded as a crop with high nutritional properties. Cultivar Nirvana was analyzed on nine locations in semiarid conditions of northern Serbia in order to assess the effects of different agroecological conditions on the organic spelt wheat production, grain yield and yield components, as well as the quality of the spelt wheat. The highest dehulled grain yield was obtained in Nadalj organic farm (3.98 t ha-1) on a carbonated chernozem, and the highest protein content in whole grain flour was found in organic spelt wheat from Pancevo (13.94%). Correlation analysis showed significant positive correlations among grain yield, spike length, spike weight, number of grains per spike, 1000-grain weight and harvest index and among plant height, spike length, weight spike, and grain weight per spike. Our study indicated that growing spelt wheat in northern Serbia could result in higher grain yield, but protein content depended on crop management on each location.