Differences in inflorescence and spike characteristics between triticale and its allied species

doi:10.11686/cyxb2025032

Abstract

Abstract:

The morphological characteristics of the inflorescence and spike are important criteria for plant classification， population differentiation， and germplasm resource identification. These characteristics also directly affect the reproductive efficiency and genetic dissemination patterns of plants. Triticale， a new species derived from the distant hybridization between wheat and rye， exhibits distinct differences in inflorescence and spike features compared with its progenitor species， wheat and rye. These differences provide taxonomic evidence for the establishment of triticale as an independent genus. This study aimed to examine in detail the differences in inflorescence and spike characteristics among triticale， wheat， and rye， to provide a taxonomic basis for the establishment of triticale as a separate genus. We compared 10 varieties （lines） of triticale， 10 of wheat， and 10 of rye. Their inflorescence and spike traits were observed and quantified， the differences among them were evaluated by principal component analysis and cluster analysis， and the results were validated by orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis （OPLS-DA）. The results show that the inflorescence length of triticale was greater than that of rye， and its width was greater than that of both wheat and rye. Additionally， the number of florets at the base spikelet was significantly higher in triticale than in wheat and rye （P<0.05）. The lemma length of the upper and lower glumes， as well as the awn length， lemma length， and palea length of the first and second florets， were all significantly greater in triticale than in wheat and rye. Although triticale had fewer spikelets than rye， it had more florets per spikelet and heavier grains， resulting in a higher thousand-grain weight under the same environmental conditions. These comprehensive analyses indicate that the inflorescence and spike characteristics of triticale are significantly different from those of wheat and rye， allowing for effective differentiation among the three. The inflorescence length， inflorescence width， grain thickness， and grain width can be used as the main morphological characteristics to distinguish triticale from wheat and rye. The results of the OPLS-DA validated these findings. In summary， the inflorescence and spike characteristics can effectively differentiate triticale from wheat and rye. These findings provide a fundamental basis for the establishment of Triticale as a taxonomic genus.

Key words: triticale, inflorescence, spike, structural traits, principal component analysis, orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis

Chang-ying GUO, Wen-hua DU. Differences in inflorescence and spike characteristics between triticale and its allied species[J]. Acta Prataculturae Sinica, 2025, 34(11): 205-216.

Figures/Tables 9

References 29

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部位Position	项目Items	小黑麦Triticale	小麦Wheat	黑麦Rye
第1小花结构 First floret structure	芒长Length of awn	8.48±0.49a	7.21±0.71b	5.56±0.29c
	外稃长Length of lemma	1.81±0.18a	1.34±0.17b	1.44±0.12b
	外稃宽Width of lemma	0.31±0.19a	0.39±0.11a	0.18±0.11b
	外稃高Height of lemma	0.36±0.16a	0.39±0.16a	0.26±0.09b
	内稃长Length of palea	1.53±0.07a	1.23±0.12c	1.45±0.11b
第2小花结构 Second floret structure	芒长Length of awn	7.81±0.97a	6.23±0.45b	5.31±0.47c
	外稃长Length of lemma	1.73±0.12a	1.41±0.12b	1.51±0.17b
	外稃宽Width of lemma	0.31±0.10b	0.39±0.11a	0.18±0.05c
	外稃高Height of lemma	0.35±0.25b	0.38±0.10a	0.22±0.12c
	内稃长Length of palea	1.51±0.09a	1.23±0.27b	1.34±0.12b

部位Position	项目Items	小黑麦Triticale	小麦Wheat	黑麦Rye
第1小花结构 First floret structure	芒长Length of awn	8.48±0.49a	7.21±0.71b	5.56±0.29c
	外稃长Length of lemma	1.81±0.18a	1.34±0.17b	1.44±0.12b
	外稃宽Width of lemma	0.31±0.19a	0.39±0.11a	0.18±0.11b
	外稃高Height of lemma	0.36±0.16a	0.39±0.16a	0.26±0.09b
	内稃长Length of palea	1.53±0.07a	1.23±0.12c	1.45±0.11b
第2小花结构 Second floret structure	芒长Length of awn	7.81±0.97a	6.23±0.45b	5.31±0.47c
	外稃长Length of lemma	1.73±0.12a	1.41±0.12b	1.51±0.17b
	外稃宽Width of lemma	0.31±0.10b	0.39±0.11a	0.18±0.05c
	外稃高Height of lemma	0.35±0.25b	0.38±0.10a	0.22±0.12c
	内稃长Length of palea	1.51±0.09a	1.23±0.27b	1.34±0.12b

花序特征 Inflorescences characteristics	小黑麦 Triticale	小麦 Wheat	黑麦 Rye	穗部特征 Spike characteristics	小黑麦 Triticale	小麦 Wheat	黑麦 Rye
花序长Inflorescence length	9.07	6.98	12.69	小穗数Number of spikelets	10.65	10.72	10.06
花序宽Inflorescence width	9.26	12.81	11.61	穗粒数Number of grains per spike	11.84	13.89	9.83
顶部小穗小花数Number of florets in top spikelet	13.73	13.64	11.28	千粒重Weight per thousand grains	24.93	14.57	23.15
中部小穗小花数Number of florets in middle spikelet	12.78	9.89	12.98	穗长Spike length	9.86	10.27	7.11
基部小穗小花数Number of florets in base spikelet	22.71	10.88	2.50	穗宽Spike width	9.62	10.00	16.67
上部护颖长Length of upper glume	16.85	10.26	11.38	穗粒重Grain weight per spike	14.57	14.79	10.00
上部护颖宽Width of upper glume	12.13	15.00	18.29	籽粒长Grain length	8.57	12.89	9.68
下部护颖长Length of lower glume	15.82	12.24	11.97	籽粒宽Grain width	7.69	6.67	10.00
下部护颖宽Width of lower glume	12.90	14.25	16.46	籽粒厚Grain thickness	7.69	8.33	9.09

花序特征 Inflorescences characteristics	小黑麦 Triticale	小麦 Wheat	黑麦 Rye	穗部特征 Spike characteristics	小黑麦 Triticale	小麦 Wheat	黑麦 Rye
花序长Inflorescence length	9.07	6.98	12.69	小穗数Number of spikelets	10.65	10.72	10.06
花序宽Inflorescence width	9.26	12.81	11.61	穗粒数Number of grains per spike	11.84	13.89	9.83
顶部小穗小花数Number of florets in top spikelet	13.73	13.64	11.28	千粒重Weight per thousand grains	24.93	14.57	23.15
中部小穗小花数Number of florets in middle spikelet	12.78	9.89	12.98	穗长Spike length	9.86	10.27	7.11
基部小穗小花数Number of florets in base spikelet	22.71	10.88	2.50	穗宽Spike width	9.62	10.00	16.67
上部护颖长Length of upper glume	16.85	10.26	11.38	穗粒重Grain weight per spike	14.57	14.79	10.00
上部护颖宽Width of upper glume	12.13	15.00	18.29	籽粒长Grain length	8.57	12.89	9.68
下部护颖长Length of lower glume	15.82	12.24	11.97	籽粒宽Grain width	7.69	6.67	10.00
下部护颖宽Width of lower glume	12.90	14.25	16.46	籽粒厚Grain thickness	7.69	8.33	9.09