TRADITIONAL METHODS OF WHEAT BREEDING

Wheat (Triticum spp. L.) is the oldest cereal crop and is cultivated in a wide variety of weather and soil conditions. It thrives in temperate climates with annual rainfall of 30–90 cm. Wheat is grown mostly in South Asia. There are several Triticum species, each with a unique genome and chromosome number. Wheat belongs to the genus Triticum, tribe Triticeae, family Poaceae (Gramineae), and order Cyperales, and is a self-pollinated crop. Traditional plant breeding is important for introducing novel alleles by crossing genotypes from various plant genetic resources, such as modern varieties with locally-adapted varieties, to increase genetic diversity and selection for desired traits such as high grain yield, early maturing, improved grain quality, and resistance to lodging, biotic and abiotic stresses. While plant breeders and geneticists are interested in modern wheat biotechnology techniques that use advanced DNA sequences and molecular methods, conventional plant breeding methods are still the most important and first step in developing new wheat cultivars with desirable traits. Plant breeders use many conventional breeding techniques for crop enhancement, the most common of which are pedigree breeding, pure line breeding, bulk breeding, mass selection, single seed descent, and backcross breeding for wheat (Baenziger et al., 2016). The inbreeding of the population and the selection process are two significant factors that influence breeding practises.