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ICARDA
and CIMMYT Harnessing the Power of Partnership in Wheat Improvement |
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Winter Wheat Sustains Rural Communities
Some of the most disadvantaged people living in relatively inaccessible areas in CWANA rely on winter and facultative wheat for food and income for the household (see box on page 4, "Spring, Winter, and Facultative Wheat"). The rainfall they need to grow wheat is scarce--less than 350 mm per year -- and grain yields are frequently less than 1.3 tons per hectare. Winters are long and cold. The short growing season provides few or no options for producing multiple crops and wheat-fallow rotations are still widely practiced. Because the landscape is often hilly, farmers find it difficult as well as costly to mechanize operations or irrigate. Infrastructure is poor in winter wheat areas, and is the least developed in the region. The farmers have limited contact with anyone who can provide new seed and information. Yet, wheat is the paramount crop for these people, and their need for new seed and information is acute. Compared to spring wheat, the investment in breeding improved winter wheat varieties in developing countries has been much less and has only started recently. Not surprisingly, improvement in average yields of rainfed winter wheat in these countries (1.3 tons per hectare) has progressed less rapidly than for spring wheats (averaging 2.5 tons per hectare). Winter wheats bred in other parts of the world are often of little use in CWANA because they succumb to yellow rust disease. The few resistant varieties usually need a longer growing season to reach maturity, or are not adapted to other stresses such as drought or zinc-deficiency in soil. |
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