Field screening for drought tolerance in Setaria italica and Panicum miliaceum millet germplasm from Iran

Abstract

The present study aims at field screening of Proso and
Foxtail millet ecotypes for drought tolerance. Accordingly,
96 promising millet ecotypes along with four checks were
evaluated under field conditions in Yazd province of Iran.
Field experiment was conducted using an incomplete block
design (LATTICE) with two replications under drought
stress and control conditions in a period of two years.
Multivariate analyses showed variance significant genetic
variation (P < 0.01) among millet ecotypes of Iranian origin.
Drought stress tremendously affected grain yield of all
genotypes. The interaction between genotype and drought
was significant for panicle weight, panicle length and days
to flowering. Based on the results of multivariate analyses
we identified the effective traits which are the foremost
factor responsible for grain yield and dry weight of fodder
under drought stress. Therefore, the selection based on
these traits would be preferable to identify genotypes with
high yield. Eventually, eight ecotypes with the higher grain
yield and 8 with the higher dry weight fodder were found
highly adoptive under moisture stress conditions. Such
ecotypes can be recommended as promising genotypes
which may eventually be released as new cultivars for
drought-affected areas.