Selection for Baking Quality in Early Generations of a Lemhi ✕ Thatcher Wheat Cross 1

Populations from a ‘Lemhi’ ✕ ‘Thatcher’ wheat cross, Triticum aestivum L., planted in 1963 and 1965 were evaluated for various aspects of flour quality. The 1963 and 1965 data, together with those obtained in 1959, 1960 and 1961 were considered in evaluating the usefulness of early‐generation testing. For evaluation purposes, the 15 best quality lines from an F 3 population grown in 1959 became Selected Population I, while 15 lines chosen at random from the same F 3 population became the Unselected Population; a new Selected Population containing the 15 best quality lines from the Unselected Population was then obtained each succeeding year that the test was run. In 1965, the best 15 lines from Selected Population I exceeded the best 15 lines from the Unselected Population on the farinograph by 1.0% for absorption, 123.0% for peak, 109.6% for stability, and 34.8% for valorimeter. An increase in wheat protein of 1.3% (8.9% more) of Selected Population I over the Unselected Population in 1965 was due to association with one or more of the farinograph characteristics. Selection in F 3 (Selected Population I) gave the highest average farinograph values, and for each generation that selection was delayed there was a reduction in these values. The data suggest that early generation selection for agronomic characteristics should be accompanied by selection for milling and baking quality to prevent loss of high quality lines. The fact that lines were obtained which exceeded both parents in selected quality traits suggests that vigorous selection in early generations of genetically diverse crosses may be productive in increasing flour quality of lines in breeding programs.