Divergent selection for water-extract viscosity in winter rye

Five cycles of divergent selection for water-extract viscosity in winter rye are carried out. Divergence between the populations depends both on the genotype of the variety and on the direction of selection. Selection in the plus direction is more effective than in the minus direction. As a result of selection, subpopulations from variety Al’fa differ in extract viscosity by 4.0 times and from cultivar Moskovskaya 12 by 5.7 times. The average genetic trend of the investigated varieties for plus selection is respectively 43.3 and 88.2% and for minus selection −10.5 and −13.3%. Skewness of the response occurred already in the first selection cycle and persisted in subsequent cycles. The value of realized heritability (h ²) varied within 0.70–0.74 for plus selection and 0.33–0.44 for minus selection. Selection for extract viscosity correlates with other valuable breeding traits. Populations with low viscosity differ from those with high viscosity by a lower yield, long and less lodging-resistant stem, and smaller 1000 grain weight and had worse baking qualities of grain. The causes of skewness and ways to increase the effectiveness of selecting rye for special purpose use are discussed.