New sources of agronomic traits of spring barley for the conditions of the southern zone of the Central region of the Russian Federation

The purpose of the research is to study a new assortment of spring barley in the conditions of the Ryazan region (southern zone of the Central region of the Russian Federation) and identify sources of agronomic traits for their further use in hybridization. The observation, study and comparison of 11 new varieties of spring barley (standard – Nadezhny) was carried out in 2020–2022 on a natural infectious background (the soil was dark gray forest heavy loamy). It was found that the highest average yield over the years of the research was in the varieties Znatnyy (Russia) – 6.38 t/ha, Ellinor (Germany) – 6.02 t/ha and Kufal (Belarus) – 5.98 t/ha. There were identified low–growing forms - the German varieties KWS Vermont and Ellinor, the height of which was in the range of 63–67 cm and varied little over the years of the research (CV, % = 3.9...6.0). The lowest protein content in the grain was in the German varieties Ellinor (12.31 %), KWS Harris (12.43 %) and the French variety Rapid (12.69 %). In order to improve the quality of forage, a group of high-protein barley was identified: Pamyati Chepeleva (15.31 %) (Russia), Kufal (14.61 %), Znatnyy (14.10 %). According to the length of the ear, the varieties Bente (8.2 cm) (Germany) and Znatnyy (8.0 cm) stood out. It has been established that the varieties of Pamyati Chepeleva and Laureate (Switzerland) have the highest productive bushiness – 4.0 and 4.4. The largest number of grains in the ear was observed in the Znatnyy variety – 23.4 pcs. All the studied source material had high resistance to phytopathogens and lodging. The new varieties identified in the research process are a valuable source material for the development of new highly competitive varieties of spring barley for the conditions of the Central region of Russia.