ABSTRACT
Inheritance of seed dormancy was studied in three crosses of bread wheats (Triticum aestivum L.) involving two non-dormant cultivars, Gamut and Shortim and two dormant cultivars Kenya 321 sib and Ford. The parents (P1 and P2), F1’s (reciprocals included), F2’s and backcrosses of F1’s to P1 and P2 were tested for seed dormancy. Dormancy was found to be controlled by two recessive genes and the segregation ratio of 15 non-dormant: 1 dormant was obtained in the F2 of two out of three crosses. The two factor segregation ratio was confirmed from the segregation pattern that occurred in the backcross populations. Kenya 321 sib possessed a higher level of dormancy than Ford. Implications of the results are discussed in relation to breeding for pre-harvest sprouting damage resistance.
