Exploring Proso Millet Resilience to Abiotic Stresses: High-Yield Potential in Desert Environments of the Middle East
Scarce water resources, high temperatures, limited rainfall, elevated soil salinity, and poor soil quality (98% sand) challenge crop production in the desert regions of the Middle East. Proso millet’s resilience under these stresses presents a potential solution for enhancing food security in arid e...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Agronomy |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/15/1/165 |
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| author | Srinivasan Samineni Sridhar Gummadi Sumitha Thushar Dil Nawaz Khan Anestis Gkanogiannis Luis Augusto Becerra Lopez-Lavalle Rakesh Kumar Singh |
| author_facet | Srinivasan Samineni Sridhar Gummadi Sumitha Thushar Dil Nawaz Khan Anestis Gkanogiannis Luis Augusto Becerra Lopez-Lavalle Rakesh Kumar Singh |
| author_sort | Srinivasan Samineni |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Scarce water resources, high temperatures, limited rainfall, elevated soil salinity, and poor soil quality (98% sand) challenge crop production in the desert regions of the Middle East. Proso millet’s resilience under these stresses presents a potential solution for enhancing food security in arid environments. This field study evaluated 24 proso millet genotypes under three environments (100% freshwater, 50% freshwater, and 10 dS/m salinity) in the UAE during normal and summer seasons, aiming to identify genotypes resilient to water, heat, and salinity stresses and to assess genotype-by-environment (G × E) interactions and key traits associated with grain yield. ANOVA indicated significant G × E interactions. Genotypes G9 and G24 displayed high yield and stability across environments during the normal season. In the summer, genotypes G7 and G10 exhibited resilience with high yields under high-temperature stress alone, while combined stresses led to yield reductions across all genotypes, with greater susceptibility under cumulative stress. GGE biplot analysis identified G9 as ideal in the normal season, while G15 and G23 demonstrated stability under combined stresses in the summer season. High chaffy grain yield (CGY) observed under summer stress conditions suggests a shift in resource allocation away from productive grain formation. The reproductive phase was highly vulnerable to heat stress, with 88% of this period experiencing daytime temperatures exceeding 40 °C, with a peak reaching up to 49 °C. These extreme conditions, coinciding with the crop’s critical growth stages, triggered a significant increase in chaffy grain production, substantially reducing overall grain yield. Despite these challenges, genotypes G7, G10, and G12 exhibited notable resilience, maintaining yields above 0.75 t ha<sup>−1</sup>. Correlation analysis suggested that selecting for increased plant height, forage yield, and 1000-grain weight (TGW) could enhance grain yield under the normal and summer conditions. This study highlights the potential of proso millet genotypes as climate-resilient options for arid regions, providing a basis for developing stress-tolerant varieties and promoting sustainable agriculture in desert climates. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-735b62a51235473aa940b1f49171046b |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2073-4395 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Agronomy |
| spelling | doaj-art-735b62a51235473aa940b1f49171046b2025-01-24T13:17:00ZengMDPI AGAgronomy2073-43952025-01-0115116510.3390/agronomy15010165Exploring Proso Millet Resilience to Abiotic Stresses: High-Yield Potential in Desert Environments of the Middle EastSrinivasan Samineni0Sridhar Gummadi1Sumitha Thushar2Dil Nawaz Khan3Anestis Gkanogiannis4Luis Augusto Becerra Lopez-Lavalle5Rakesh Kumar Singh6The International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), Dubai P.O. Box 14660, United Arab EmiratesThe International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), Dubai P.O. Box 14660, United Arab EmiratesThe International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), Dubai P.O. Box 14660, United Arab EmiratesThe International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), Dubai P.O. Box 14660, United Arab EmiratesThe International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), Dubai P.O. Box 14660, United Arab EmiratesThe International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), Dubai P.O. Box 14660, United Arab EmiratesThe International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), Dubai P.O. Box 14660, United Arab EmiratesScarce water resources, high temperatures, limited rainfall, elevated soil salinity, and poor soil quality (98% sand) challenge crop production in the desert regions of the Middle East. Proso millet’s resilience under these stresses presents a potential solution for enhancing food security in arid environments. This field study evaluated 24 proso millet genotypes under three environments (100% freshwater, 50% freshwater, and 10 dS/m salinity) in the UAE during normal and summer seasons, aiming to identify genotypes resilient to water, heat, and salinity stresses and to assess genotype-by-environment (G × E) interactions and key traits associated with grain yield. ANOVA indicated significant G × E interactions. Genotypes G9 and G24 displayed high yield and stability across environments during the normal season. In the summer, genotypes G7 and G10 exhibited resilience with high yields under high-temperature stress alone, while combined stresses led to yield reductions across all genotypes, with greater susceptibility under cumulative stress. GGE biplot analysis identified G9 as ideal in the normal season, while G15 and G23 demonstrated stability under combined stresses in the summer season. High chaffy grain yield (CGY) observed under summer stress conditions suggests a shift in resource allocation away from productive grain formation. The reproductive phase was highly vulnerable to heat stress, with 88% of this period experiencing daytime temperatures exceeding 40 °C, with a peak reaching up to 49 °C. These extreme conditions, coinciding with the crop’s critical growth stages, triggered a significant increase in chaffy grain production, substantially reducing overall grain yield. Despite these challenges, genotypes G7, G10, and G12 exhibited notable resilience, maintaining yields above 0.75 t ha<sup>−1</sup>. Correlation analysis suggested that selecting for increased plant height, forage yield, and 1000-grain weight (TGW) could enhance grain yield under the normal and summer conditions. This study highlights the potential of proso millet genotypes as climate-resilient options for arid regions, providing a basis for developing stress-tolerant varieties and promoting sustainable agriculture in desert climates.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/15/1/165<i>Panicum miliaceum</i> L. stabilitycorrelationchaffy grainabiotic stresssalinityhigh temperature |
| spellingShingle | Srinivasan Samineni Sridhar Gummadi Sumitha Thushar Dil Nawaz Khan Anestis Gkanogiannis Luis Augusto Becerra Lopez-Lavalle Rakesh Kumar Singh Exploring Proso Millet Resilience to Abiotic Stresses: High-Yield Potential in Desert Environments of the Middle East Agronomy <i>Panicum miliaceum</i> L. stability correlation chaffy grain abiotic stress salinity high temperature |
| title | Exploring Proso Millet Resilience to Abiotic Stresses: High-Yield Potential in Desert Environments of the Middle East |
| title_full | Exploring Proso Millet Resilience to Abiotic Stresses: High-Yield Potential in Desert Environments of the Middle East |
| title_fullStr | Exploring Proso Millet Resilience to Abiotic Stresses: High-Yield Potential in Desert Environments of the Middle East |
| title_full_unstemmed | Exploring Proso Millet Resilience to Abiotic Stresses: High-Yield Potential in Desert Environments of the Middle East |
| title_short | Exploring Proso Millet Resilience to Abiotic Stresses: High-Yield Potential in Desert Environments of the Middle East |
| title_sort | exploring proso millet resilience to abiotic stresses high yield potential in desert environments of the middle east |
| topic | <i>Panicum miliaceum</i> L. stability correlation chaffy grain abiotic stress salinity high temperature |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/15/1/165 |
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