Weizen

Wheat species - Triticum spec.

(Common wheat, durum, emmer, einkorn, spelt)

With respect to cultivation area, wheat is today's most important cereal - in Germany, in Europe and in the world. Wheat originates from the Middle East. The oldest forms are einkorn and emmer that have been developed over thousands of years into the modern cultivars. Wheat is a self-pollinating plant. The bisexual flowers usually pollinate before the flowers have opened. In rare cases, open-pollination may occur.

Breeding Successes: From Rimpau's Crossing to Bread Wheat Varieties

Modern wheat varieties are a token of successful plant breeding of the past 100 years. Back in 1880, Wilhelm Rimpau succeeded in creating first high-performing wheat varieties by means of crossing. In many years of conventional line breeding, yield potential, resistance to diseases and agronomic properties such as winter hardiness or resistance to lodging and have been remarkably enhanced. As a result, average yield increased in Germany in the past 100 years from 20 to 80 dt/ha, but can reach 120 dt/ha under ideal conditions. At present, yield increases by 0.5 dt/ha annually. Plant breeders also had great success in improving the milling and baking properties. Bread wheat has developed from an import to an export good in Germany. In 2008, the extensive plant breeding efforts have provided the farmers with a choice between more than 170 different wheat varieties for any possible utilization or cultivation site. In our climate zone, wheat is cultivated as winter wheat, i.e. sown in autumn and harvested in the summer next year, or as spring wheat sown in spring and harvested in the same year's summer.

Wheat - a Multitalent

Wheat is one of the most important staple crops of mankind. It also plays an important global role as livestock feed. Apart from its excellent baking properties, wheat is also processed into semolina, beer, starch or wheat germ oil as well as in industrial production into glue, paper and cosmetics. Wheat also plays an increasing role in the production of bioethanol.

Yield Increases for an Ever-Growing World Population

With world population and wheat consumption ever growing, plant breeders have been concentrating on further yield increases. Apart from traditional breeding methods, modern methods as e.g. genomic research and biotechnology are promising approaches that are expected to help generate further substantial yield increases in the future. An important contribution is hybrid breeding, which has already been successfully used in the past. Apart from yield, disease resistance as well as baking and feeding quality continue to be important breeding objectives.

Click here to read more on an international comparison of breeding successes in wheat.