Genetic breeding must become more and more efficient to support the expansion in oat cropping area and the industrial utilization of oat grains, originating more productive genotypes in a shorter period of time. One of the improvement strategies that may be used to optimize the identification of potentially high productive genotypes is the indirect selection, if conducted through a character of easy measurement and high correlation with final productivity. Thus, the objective of this work was to evaluate the efficiency of use of panicle weight factor as an indirect selection criterion to increment oat grain yield. Segregating populations were conducted in F2 and F3 generations and submitted to three selection environments. At each site, over the best performing populations, a randomized sampling of 10 panicles was made. The samples were weighed and classified as superior or inferior according to their weight, in function of the standart deviation from average. The response to the selection was evaluated in the following generation, through phenotypic variables (panicle weight and grain yield) and genetic parameters in the three selection environments. Panicles of superior weight originated also panicles of superior weight in the posterior generation in all three environments of selection. On the other hand, for the grain yield variable, the criterion of selection was effective in one environment only. The results demonstrated that indirect selection is a good selection tool for grain yield in oats, if carried out under responsive environments allowing the maximum expression of genotypes.
Avena sativa; genetic breeding; panicle weight
