Inheritance of Leaf Relative Water Content in Bread Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Under Rainfed Conditions

Regarding to wheat production in considerable rainfed areas، identification and selection of suitable breeding methods and using proper and applicable selection criteria for recognizing drought resistant varieties are utmost important. Selection efficiency for a trait، is related to its heritability and type of genes action. Hence، to study the inheritance of leaf relative water content (RWC) in rainfed conditions، an experiment was conducted with 50 F2:3 lines and two parent lines in a randomized complete block design with three replications in year 2007. Results showed that RWC was controlled by additive gene effects with a high narrow and broad-sense heritability. Therefore، we can expect relatively high genetic gain from selection of this trait in rainfed conditions.