Adaptability of winter wheat varieties to soil and climatic conditions of the Astrakhan region

Introduction. Wheat is one of the main agricultural crops in the Lower Volga region. However, the area under durum wheat varieties is small, accounting for only 8-9 %. The goal of the research was to evaluate the resistance of winter wheat breeding material to arid climate conditions in order to determine the source material for practical breeding. The objects and methods. The object of the research was seven winter wheat varieties (collection of the All-Russian Institute of Plant Genetic Resources named after N.I. Vavilov). A field experiment was conducted in the Astrakhan region from 2022 to 2025 on light chestnut soils (an experimental land use plot of Pavlov Federal Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences). The experiment aimed at studying and introducing promising durum wheat varieties. The analysis of the primary breeding material, including wheat varieties, was carried out in specialized nurseries using typical experimental methods for grain crops. The results and discussion. A study of the agrobiological characteristics of durum wheat in the soil and climatic conditions of the Astrakhan region revealed a significant correlation between tillering rates (total and productive) and productive stem density on the genotypic characteristics of varieties and environmental factors. Assessing resistance to the abiotic stressors of high temperatures and dry winds was necessary for formulating recommendations for varietal selection. Conclusion. A comparative analysis revealed that the Aksint, Onyx, and Amazonka varieties consistently demonstrated an advantage over the standard: their productive tillering rate exceeded the control values by 7-12 stems/m² annually. According to data obtained during the research period, the Aksint (28) and Amazonka and Onyx (26 each) varieties had the highest grain count per spike. These varieties exceeded the Bezenchukskaya 100 standard, which consistently maintained a grain count of 20-22 grains throughout all observation periods.

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