Long coleoptile genotype and soil texture interactions determine establishment success and early growth parameters of wheat sown at depth

Abstract

Long coleoptile (LC) - wheat genotypes sown deeper (> 10 cm) than current practice (< 5 cm) enables earlier deep sowing into subsurface soil moisture. The LC genotype shows promise to broaden sowing windows and remove reliance on the shifting seasonal break for crop establishment. The suitability of this sowing strategy to the highly variable soils of the southern Australian wheatbelt warrants investigation to identify suitable environments for potential establishment benefits. We conducted controlled environment room (CER) and field experiments using pairs of near-isogenic-lines (NILs) that differed genetically only for coleoptile length. The experiments investigated the suitability of deep sown (12 cm) LC wheats in soils with different texture (sand versus loam). The CER experiment identified that LC genotypes exhibited greater emergence and early seedling growth, producing greater shoot and root biomass, when deep sown (12 cm) in loam. While LC and short coleoptile (SC) genotypes produced similar shoot growth when sown at depth in sand, LC produced greater root biomass reflected in more seminal roots. In the field on sand, LC and SC had similar emergence and early shoot growth characteristics at all sowing depths (5, 8 and 10 cm). However, the heavy-textured, loam soil reduced seedling emergence and restricted leaf growth with deep sowing (12 cm) in the SC. Our results indicate that the LC trait was more critical for plant emergence and early growth parameters (shoot and root biomass) from depth in a heavier textured loam compared with a sand. By identifying environments that will likely benefit most from deep sown LC, we are one step closer to adapting crop production to shifting rainfall patterns in southern Australia.

Focus on the future of water-limited agricultural landscapes

“…Refinement of crop genetics to improve baseline resistance to extremes like drought and high temperature and to enable climate-adaptive management systems will also help with system adaptation and transformation. In Australian dryland systems, for instance, long-coleoptile wheat genotypes have allowed for deeper planting into subsurface soil moisture, which can lengthen the time window for sowing and decrease reliance on ever-shifting seasonal precipitation events (Stummer et al 2023). Development of crop varieties that perform well in novel dryland contexts will be important in easing cropping system transitions by reducing agronomic risk and improving financial incentives to adapt.…”

INITIAL VIGOR IN WHEAT GERMOPLASM (Triticum spp.)

“…Initial vigor traits that reduce soil evaporation and that can increase light interception and competitiveness of the wheat crop during early development are: seedling leaf width, coleoptile lengths, leaf area, and tillers. long coleoptile (Stummer et al, 2023). These characters are associated with increasing early leaf development (increased vigor) so that the crop canopy develops as quickly as possible and the soil surface is shaded, avoiding losses through evaporation, allowing more water to its use in perspiration (Mullan and Barcelo Garcia, 2012).…”