SELECTING PARENTAL MATERIALS FOR HYBRIDIZATION BY DISCRIMINANT FUNCTION

Yield and yield components were measured in thirty cultivars of winter wheat originating from the U.S.A., former U.S.S.R., and the European countries in three years and two locations. Discriminant function was applied to all years and locations to select parents for hybridization aimed at yield improvement. Among all of the functions, only two were significant. The discriminant weights for significant functions, showed that the order of contribution of yield components was kernel per spike, kernel weight, and tiller number. The best two-way and three-way crosses were determined. Genotypes classified as good parents were from different high, medium and low yielding groups.