Recently, researchers from the Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture, CAAS revealed that the stability of the winter wheat flowering period may be further enhanced under future climate change conditions. The related research findings have been published in the  Science of the Total Environment .

According to Researcher Yong He, in the past few decades, winter wheat breeders have invested significant resources in regulating and optimizing the flowering dates to maximize the utilization of available climatic resources. However, with the rapid rise in global temperatures over the past few decades, it remains unclear whether the stability of winter wheat can adapt to future climate conditions.

The research team successfully pioneered the development of China's first Multi-Locus Genotype-based (MLG-based) simulation model for predicting the flowering dates of winter wheat. This innovative model leverages the advanced capabilities of the Agricultural Production System Simulator (APSIM). Utilizing the model simulation results, the research indicates that, compared with the baseline climate scenario, the stability of the winter wheat flowering period in the winter wheat regions of northern China is expected to be further enhanced by 2050. The research further points out that the combination of winter wheat genotypes carrying photoperiod gene  Ppd-D1a and vernalization gene  vrn-D1 exhibits a significant promoting effect on the stability of the flowering period. The research results provide a scientific basis for breeding winter wheat varieties with greater climate resilience.  

This research was supported by the General Program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Program of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

Linkage:https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0048969724004406