MORPHOLOGICAL VARIABILITY IN THE NEW VARIETIES OF TRITICALE, HAIDUC AND FDL BOLID

Currently, new varieties of triticale show improved morphological characteristics, according to the requirements of practice. The new directions mainly concern the waist and the components of the ear. Recent research has shown that new varieties, which form chains with relatively lower heights, could be suitable for different levels of intensification. On the other hand, current studies on morphological characters are useful in the progress of variety improvement, characteristic of the current stage. The wide genetic dowry and growing conditions of triticale usually lead to the specific expression of plant morphology. In the autumn triticale varieties Haiduc and FDL Bolid, some new directions were found, these being recently improved. Thus, compared to the two varieties, the straw and its upper segments were shorter in Haiduc. The thickness of the straw at the base was 0.2 mm smaller at Bolid. Both the length of the spike and its weight were similar. The Haiduc variety dominated instead in the number of spikelets in a spike, 31 compared to 29 in the Bolid variety. The membranes that cover the spikelet had similar dimensions: the external glume of 9 mm, the lower palea of 12-13 mm, and at Bolid the awn was 2 cm higher. The two varieties of triticale were more obviously differentiated by the morphological characteristics of the grains. Thus, for the Bolid variety, the number of grains in an ear was higher by 10, and the weight was higher by 0.5 g. Instead, the grain length was higher in Haiduc. The dominant values of the mass of one thousand grains were in both varieties at 50 g. Specific and at the same time important correlations were obtained between the morphological characters of the varieties. Thus, the number of grains in an ear and their weight were positively correlated with all the studied characters, with higher values of the correlation coefficients obtained for the Bolid variety. Both varieties of autumn triticale have demonstrated by their morphological characteristics, a good adaptability to zonal conditions.