Document Type : Original Article

Authors

• Amir Gholizadeh ¹
• Mehdi Ghaffari ²
• Hossein Ahmadi-Ochtapeh ¹
• Morad Cheshmehnoor ³
• Gholam Hossein Shiresmaeili ⁴
• Farnaz Shariati ⁵

¹ Assistant Professor, Crop and Horticultural Science Research Department, Golestan Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Center, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Gorgan, Iran

² Associate Professor, Oil Crops Research Department, Seed and Plant Improvement Institute, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Karaj, Iran

³ Researcher, Crop and Horticultural Science Research Department, Lorestan Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Center, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Khoramabad, Iran

⁴ Assistant Professor, Crop and Horticultural Science Research Department, Isfahan Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Center, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Isfahan, Iran

⁵ Assistant Professor, Oil Crops Research Department, Seed and Plant Improvement Institute, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Karaj, Iran

Abstract

Introduction
The sunflower, with a global planting area of 29 million hectares and a yield of 1970 kg per hectare (FAO, 2021), is adapted to different regions of the world, including Iran. The sunflower is one of the most important oilseed plants in the world, whose seeds contain 26-50% oil and 20-27% protein. Sunflower oil is desirable for human consumption due to its favorable fatty acid composition. Sunflower oil quality is affected by the seed oil content and fatty acid composition of the oil and defines the oil’s value for industry. The fatty acid composition of sunflower determines its uses and health advantages on for human beings, while oil content determines its economic value. For oil quality purposes, oleic and linoleic acids are the most important fatty acids because these contribute almost 90% to the total fatty acid content in sunflower oil. The amount of oleic acid determines the quality of sunflower oil more than other fatty acids because it is important for both edible purposes and biodiesel production. One of the most important factors inhibiting the growth and production of plants is abiotic stresses, especially drought and salinity stresses. Drought and salinity stresses are the most important factors limiting the growth and survival of plants in arid and semi-arid regions of the world. Water is a major component of the fresh produce and significantly effects on weight and quality of plants. Also, drought stress may cause significant changes in the yield and composition of fatty oils in oilseed plants. Iran, with an average annual rainfall of 240 mm, is included among arid and semi-arid regions of the world. Of the million hectares of cultivated region, only five million are under irrigation because of intense water limitations. The sunflowers have been cultivated for many years in different parts of Iran. Therefore, evaluating new sunflower hybrids under different environmental stress conditions is essential for identifying and selecting superior hybrids with high and stable yield potential.
Materials and methods
In this study, 18 new sunflower hybrids along with the Zarin cultivar, were evaluated under different environmental stresses (non-stress, drought stress, and salinity stress) in a randomized complete block design with three replications in four experimental field stations (Boroujerd, Gorgan, Gonbad and Isfahan) during the 2022-2023 cropping season. The GGE biplot statistical method (genotype effect + genotype × environment interaction) was used to study the stability of genotypes in the studied environments.
Results and discussion
The results of the combined analysis of variance indicated that the effects of environments (E), genotypes (G), and genotype × environment (G×E) interaction were significant for seed yield. The G, E, and G×E interaction effects accounted for 94.74%, 3.94%, and 1.32% of the total variation, respectively. The results of genotype × environment interaction analysis using the GGE-biplot method indicated that the first and second principal components of the GGE-biplot explained 83.2% of the total seed yield variation. Based on the polygon view of the biplot, the hybrid H2 in the Gorgan environment and the hybrids H1, H4, and H16 in Gonbad, Isfahan, and Borujerd environments were identified as superior genotypes with high specific adaptation. Based on the hypothetical ideal genotype biplot, the hybrids H1, H4, and H16 performed better exhibited other hybrids in terms of seed yield and stability and had the high general adaptation to all environments. Therefore, these hybrids can be used for further testing, including adaptation tests. Furthermore, the results showed that the Gonbad environment was the closest to the ideal environment in terms of discriminating ability and representativeness. Therefore, the Gonbad environment can be considered a suitable test location for selecting superior sunflower hybrids.
Conclusion
In general, our results demonstrated the efficiency of the graphical method of the GGE-biplot in investigating the G×E interaction effect and providing valuable good information about the studied genotypes and environments.

Keywords

• Sunflower
• Stability
• Ideal genotype
• Seed yield

Main Subjects

• Breeding plants for stress conditions