PARTICIPATORY VARIETY SELECTION FOR SELECTING AND DISSEMINATING FARMERS-PREFERRED WHEAT VARIETIES

Abstract

Participatory Variety Selection research was conducted at the Wheat Research Centre, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute, Nashipur, Dinajpur and 5 farmers’ fields of Dinajpur and Thakurgaon districts. Five varieties including widely grown check variety Kanchan and three advance lines selected according to the needs of farmers of the study areas were tested in Mother trials at on-station and farmers’ fields and Baby trials at farmers’ fields. Dissemination of new wheat varieties was carried out through seed supply, focus group discussion and frequent interactions. The results of Mother trials at on-station and farmers’ fields indicated that, the new varieties: Bijoy and Prodip and advance lines: BAW 1035, BAW 1059 and BAW 1064 produced significantly higher yields than the check variety Kanchan. These entries had significantly higher 1000-grain weights and matured earlier than Kanchan. The advance lines performed better in farmers’ fields than research station. The data of Baby trials were in strong agreement with that of Mother trials, but Baby trials were less costly and easier to conduct. Farmers more preferred BAW 1059 and BAW 1064 than Kanchan for Chapati qualities. Shatabdi was the most stable and Bijoy was the most sensitive genotype to changing production environments. BAW 1064 was also stable. Its yield was the highest in poor growing conditions and good in all conditions. Thirty farmers of the study villages produced 5120 kg seeds of Sourav, Shatabdi, Bijoy and Prodip. Twenty seven farmers preserved 2570 kg seeds for their own use and distributed 2550 kg to 60 new farmers. So, seeds of 4 new varieties were reached to 87 wheat farmers of two working villages in 2006. The seeds of these varieties were sown in 2006-07; as a result, yield and varietal diversity were increased in the study villages. Participatory Variety Selection research was found more effective in selecting farmers’ preferred varieties and disseminating new varieties than conventional plant breeding. Institutionalization and widespread adoption of this new plant breeding approach will increase wheat yield in the country and reduce import cost.