Honeycomb selection for yield in early generations of spring wheat

Summary The effectiveness of the honeycomb selection method for yield in spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) was evaluated using progenies from two wheat crosses, Glenlea x NB131 and Glenlea x Era. Honeycomb selection was carried out in the F₂ and F₃ generations, grown at the University of Manitoba in the summers of 1980 and 1981, respectively. In both generations, divergent selection was made for both high and low yield. Plants selected in the F₃ generation were entered in an F₄ yield test in the summer of 1982. Results of the experiment showed that honeycomb selection for yield in the F₂ and F₃ generations was effective in identifying parents of high- and low-yielding lines. F₃ plants from highyielding F₂ selections gave higher yields than those from low-yielding F₂ selections by 11.5% and 13.0% for Glenlea x NB131 and Glenlea x Era crosses, respectively. The F₄ yield test showed that high yielding selections from both crosses significantly outyielded by 8.9% low yielding selections and by 14.4% the unselected composite lines. It is concluded that the honeycomb selection method can be used for early generation selection in spring wheat.