1. SYED MUHAMMAD TASEER ABBAS NAQVI - Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad.
2. RIZWANA MAQBOOL - Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad.
3. AYESHA TAHIR - Department of Biosciences, COMSATS University Islamabad.
4. ZAHEER AHMED - Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad.
5. IQRAR AHMAD RANA - Centre of Agricultural Biochemistry and Biotechnology, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad.
Wheat, a staple crop crucial for global food security, often suffers from deficiencies in essential micronutrients like zinc (Zn) and iron (Fe), leading to widespread malnutrition. Enhancing the nutritional quality of wheat through genetic diversity and agro-morphological trait selection is essential to meet the increasing demand for nutrient-rich food. To address these deficiencies, this study aimed to screen wheat genotypes for genetic diversity and agro-morphological traits, which are critical for enhancing the nutritional quality of wheat. The experiment was designed to evaluate the impact of different treatments (Normal, Soil (Fe+Zn), and Soil+Foliar (Fe+Zn)) on these traits. A total of 125 wheat genotypes were evaluated during the 2019-20 growing season at the University of Agriculture Faisalabad. The experiment employed a randomized complete block design with two replications for each treatment. Data were collected on various morphological and yield-related traits, and statistical analyses, including ANOVA and Principal Component Analysis (PCA), were conducted to identify significant differences and key contributing traits. The results revealed non-significant differences in flag leaf area among treatments but significant differences in plant height, with the Soil (Fe+Zn) treatment yielding the tallest plants. The highest plant height was observed in genotype G121, reaching 168.00 cm. In terms of spike length, significant differences were observed among treatments, with the maximum spike length recorded in genotype G13 at 13.19 cm under the Soil+Foliar (Fe+Zn) treatment. Moreover, the highest grain yield per plant was observed in genotype G56, which achieved 29.97 g under the Soil+Foliar (Fe+Zn) treatment. PCA identified spike length, spikelets per spike, 1000-grain weight, plant height, and number of grains per spike as key contributors to genotype variation, explaining 55.4% of the total variation. The study successfully identified 15 wheat genotypes with superior agro-morphological traits from this screening experiment, which have been selected for crossing in future breeding programs to enhance the nutritional quality and yield of wheat.
Wheat Genotypes, Genetic Diversity, Agro-Morphological Traits, Nutritional Quality, Micronutrient Deficiency, Grain Yield, Breeding Programs.