Winter and Specialty Wheat

Abstract

Wheat is the most widely grown crop in the world. Winter wheat is primarily common wheat (2n = 6x = 42) which has extensive germplasm resources that are used in breeding, often for disease and insect resistance. Though wheat can be used as a forage crop and its grain for animal feed, the primary uses of common wheat are to make products used for human consumption; hence end-use quality is also a major breeding objective. The quality characteristics of these products are often associated with kernel hardness which affects milling, kernel color, and specific climatic zones or regions. The soft red and white wheat cultivars of the Eastern and Southeastern U.S. are generally used to make breakfast cereals, cookies, cakes, and crackers. The hard red and white wheat cultivars of the Great Plains are used predominantly for leavened products such as bread. The soft white wheat cultivars of the Pacific Northwest are often exported and used to make noodles or steam breads. These end-uses and production (adaptation) regions determine the germplasm pools used by wheat breeders. All of the common self pollinated breeding methods are used to breed new wheat cultivars. The choice of breeding method is usually based upon breeding objective and program resources. Breeding methods and objectives are evolving with new technology and market changes.