Morphological and molecular marker-based characterization of winter wheat genotypes for enhanced adaptation and yield

Abstract Winter wheat is a major staple crop in temperate regions and generally shows higher yield potential than spring wheat; however, productivity is often constrained by high temperature stress. This study evaluated morphological variability and genetic characteristics among 134 winter wheat genotypes. Morphological traits were analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) in IBM SPSS Statistics 25. Significant variation (p < 0.05) was observed for germination, flag leaf dimensions, plant height, peduncle length, awn length, spike length, stem diameter, biomass, spike weight, tillers, and harvest index. Qualitative traits, including crown morphology, leaf architecture, flowering and anthesis behavior, lodging, and leaf rust susceptibility, also varied among genotypes. Pearson correlation analysis revealed strong positive associations (p < 0.05) among most traits, whereas harvest index showed weak correlations with germination and flag leaf width, indicating a trade-off between vegetative growth and reproductive allocation. Molecular screening identified VRN1 in three genotypes and NAM-B1 in two lines.