Climate Smart Wheat Variety of ICAR

February 23, 2023

In recent times, India has been facing several issues with the wheat crop. Production of wheat was affected due to high temperatures and scanty winter rainfall. Prices shot up. People faced a shortage of wheat all over the country this season. The main reason behind the chaos is climate change. The winter rainfall that usually occurs in January-March is very essential for the crop. Without these rains, the temperature increases. Due to this, the wheat seeds face difficulty in germinating, flowering, and also in growing to their full ability. To put an end to such nuances, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research recently introduced a climate-smart wheat variety called the HD-3385.

About HD-3385

Plant height: 95 cm
Time to heading: 100 to 110 days
Least Lodging prone
Suitable for early sowing

What is the issue?

The major wheat-producing states (producing during winter) are Rajasthan, MP, Punjab, and Haryana. They sow in early November. States UP and Bihar, sow in late November. They come to heading in 140-145 days (by mid-march). Heading means bearing flowers and then producing grains eventually. During heading, the wheat crops require the right temperature (20 to 25 degrees Celsius). High heat is damaging their grain-producing ability. So the solution is to prepone the sowing so that the crops can reach the heading stage in late February or early March before heat waves begin. But if you prepone and sow in October, heading occurs within 70 days affecting the yield. If sown in early November, premature flowering occurs. This is because the crops cannot bloom at very low temperatures if sown early. So the solution is to reduce their blooming temperature!

SOLUTION

The HD-3385 will come to heading within 100 days and therefore shall be sown early. Also, the new variety accumulates biomass along with grain weight.

The technique used to create HD-3385

MILD VERNALISATION REQUIREMENT.

The Vernalisation is the plant’s dependence on low temperatures to bloom. Here, scientists have changed the wheat crop’s ability to bloom in lower temperatures.

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