Factor Analyses of Characters Useful in Screening Wheat for Sprouting Damage

The factor-structure of principal-factors derived from three sprouting characters and six base characters was examined to identify the most prominent characters accounting for the dispersion in ninety-seven diverse wheat lines. Simple and partial correlations were compared, and led to divergent interpretations of associations amongst the characters. Multiple and canonical correlations between sprouting and base characters were estimated also. It was concluded that screening of lines for sprouting resistance should be based directly on sprouting attributes themselves, and that monitoring for harvest-ripeness was beneficial to obtaining valid results.