ABSTRACT
RL 4137, a spring wheat genotype with a long, stable dormancy period and three genes for red seed color, was hybridized with 7722, a white-seeded wheat. In both the F3 and F5 generations a positive relationship existed between red seed color and sprouting resistance (SR). The mean number of heads sprouted per sample for all the red-seeded progeny was less than that for the red-seeded control cultivars in both the F3 and F5.
The six white-seeded F3 lines exhibited a range in sprouting response from susceptible to as resistant as some red-seeded control cultivars. The mean number of heads sprouted per sample for two white-seeded F4 families was intermediate to both the red-seeded and white-seeded controls at both T0 and T10. Some white-seeded F4 lines had lower sprouting at T10 than the red-seeded controls Pitic 62, Neepawa, and Glenlea.
The percent dormancy of six white-seeded F5 families derived from F3 lines was greater than the mid-parent value. There were significant differences among the F5 families for mean percent dormancy.
The results indicate that some of the dormancy of RL 4137 has been transferred to the white-seeded progeny. The evidence suggests that RL 4137 has a genetic mechanism for SR associated with red seed color and one or more mechanisms not associated with seed color.
