Evaluation of bread wheat varieties (Triticum aestivum) in selected areas of Gamo District, Southern Ethiopia

Bread wheat is cultivated in a wide range of high and mid-altitude areas of Ethiopia ranking 4th in area coverage and 2nd in productivity. Although many improved bread wheat varieties have been released nationally and regionally, these varieties are not well disseminated and popularized. In southern Ethiopia “Gamo” district, there is only little bread wheat variety under production which is risky if there would be an occurrence of new diseases and other stresses. To alleviate such a crop’s potential challenge, recently released bread wheat varieties were tested for their phenotypic performance to confirm their environmental adaptation. The average productivity of the tested genotypes were evaluated at three locations (Dita, Kamba and Bonke) using randomized complete block design with three replication for two consecutive years (2020/21 to 2021/22).The experimental material consists of ten improved bread wheat genotypes including standard check. The Combined analysis of variance showed significant (P<0.05) difference among tested genotypes on collected parameters except spike length and productive tiller number indicating the presence of adequate variability among the tested genotypes. The highest combined mean grain yield recorded was 3789.5kg ha-1 from Bondena variety while the lowest obtained was 2797.5 kg ha-1 from Lemu variety.