Summary
The grain yield of F5 lines from a barley cross, grown in field plots, showed no correlation with F3 single plant grain yield. F5 grain yield did however show a significant inverse relationship with plant height and leaf length in the F3, especially at high levels of nitrogen. Shorter plants with shorter leaves in the F3 tended to produce lines of similar habit in the F5, and these characters were associated with lower F3 grain yield and higher F5 grain yield.
These relationships are believed to depend on the different circumstances of competition in the F3 and the F5 respectively. It is concluded that plant form in segregating generations of cereals may provide a valuable selection criterion for high grain yield in monocultures.
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Hamblin, J., Donald, C.M. The relationships between plant form, competitive ability and grain yield in a barley cross. Euphytica 23, 535–542 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00022474
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00022474