Waterlogging at the tillering stage, a key early vegetative growth stage, is increasingly limiting wheat productivity worldwide, but the physiological mechanisms underlying genotypic tolerance are not fully understood. To address this, 23 bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) genotypes from five germplasm groups were exposed to 14 days of waterlogging at the tillering stage. Morphological traits including leaf (green area, biomass, and senescent biomass proportion) and the elongation rate of the main culm (cm day−1), plant water status (relative water content, RWC), photosynthetic pigment content (SPAD values; total chlorophyll, TChl; total carotenoids, TCar), and photosynthetic performance (maximal photochemical efficiency of photosystem II, Fv/Fm; actual photochemical efficiency of photosystem II, Fv′/Fm′; net photosyntheis, Pn; stomatal conductance to water vapor, gs), were assessed. Waterlogging induced strong but highly variable responses among genotypes. Sensitive genotypes showed marked reductions in green biomass (up to ~40–60%), TChl content (up to ~80%), TCar (~70%), and photosynthetic performance, including declines in Fv/Fm, Fv′/Fm′, and Pn. In contrast, tolerant genotypes maintained higher photochemical efficiency, Pn, and pigment content, despite stress exposure, underscoring greater functional resilience. Importantly, morphological stability did not consistently translate into functional performance. Several genotypes maintained green leaf area despite pronounced declines in photosynthetic capacity and pigment content, revealing a decoupling between morphological and physiological responses. Multivariate analysis identified an integrated photosynthetic trait axis strongly associated with yield performance under stress, highlighting that tolerance is primarily driven by the capacity to maintain photosynthetic function rather than green biomass alone. Together, these findings emphasize the importance of preserving both physiological functionality and green leaf area to maintain waterlogging tolerance. Integrated physiological markers (e.g., TChl and TCar content, photochemical quenching, leaf gas exchange traits) enable effective early screening and support function-based selection in wheat breeding programs.

Thirteen genotypes of durum wheat were grown in two different environments in Portugal. Grain and ash mineral profile, as well as protein content, test weight, and grain ash content were evaluated. Genotype, environment, and their interaction explains the variation in the quality traits, with the environment having the highest influence. Mineral profile analysis was performed by the μ-EDXRF system: macroelements (K, P, Ca, Cl, and S) represented 99% of the total concentration detected in the grain samples, while microelements represented up to 2% of the total concentration when analyzing the ash samples (Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, Si, Rb, Sr, and Ti). Almost every element found in the grain and ash analysis was affected by the environment. Only K and Ca in the grain had higher concentrations in the environment with water scarcity, while the concentrations of all the detected elements except for Si and Sr were higher in the ashes in this environment. Regarding the genotype, P, S, and Cu grain concentrations were not affected by the environment. The highest grain mineral concentration was found for Gingão, suggesting a better mineral uptake and/or translocation-to-grain capacity. However, regarding the technological quality, most of the genotypes presented ash content values above the maximum specified threshold.

Monoculture systems depend on high nitrogen (N) fertilisation. Incorporating legumes into forage crops offers a sustainable alternative with agronomic and economic benefits. This study assesses the impact of legumes in fodder systems, evaluating yield, N use efficiency (NUE), and profitability while identifying the best cropping strategy under semi-arid conditions. The experiment, conducted at Herdade da Comenda, Elvas, Portugal, used a split–split-plot randomised block design to analyse N doses, forage species, and irrigation. Economic metrics, including costs, net revenue, return on investment, and risk analysis, were also assessed. Moderate N doses (120 kg ha−1) resulted in significantly higher NUE (15.67 kg kg−1 N) than higher doses (200 kg ha−1), which yield only 1.40 kg kg−1 N (p < 0.05), particularly in mixed fodder crops. Irrigation improved N absorption, crop nutrition, and yield, leading to higher profitability despite increased initial costs. Agronomically, irrigation and N doses influenced yield and nutrient uptake, while no significant differences were observed between different forage crops in terms of yield or NUE. Economically, the irrigated mixed crop showed the highest return on investment (ROI = 247.37 EUR ha−1), whereas ryegrass presented lower financial risk (BE = 2213.24 kg ha−1) due to lower establishment costs. Yield was the strongest predictor of net profit (R2 = 0.89). Looking ahead, optimising N management, irrigation strategies, and mixed grass–legume crops will be crucial to maximising economic returns while minimising environmental impacts.

The current Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) foresees a reduction of 50% in the use of herbicides by 2030. This study investigates the potential of integrating remote sensing with a low-cost RGB sensor and variable-rate technology (VRT) to optimize herbicide application in a ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) fodder crop. The trial was conducted on three 7.5-hectare plots, comparing a variable-rate application (VRA) of herbicide guided by a prescription map generated from segmented digital images, with a fixed-rate application (FRA) and a control (no herbicide applied). The weed population and crop biomass were assessed to evaluate the efficiency of the proposed method. Results revealed that the VRA method reduced herbicide usage by 30% (0.22 l ha−1) compared to the FRA method, while maintaining comparable crop production. These findings demonstrate that smart weed management techniques can contribute to the CAP’s sustainability goals by reducing chemical inputs and promoting efficient crop production. Future research will focus on improving weed recognition accuracy and expanding this methodology to other cropping systems.

The sustainable intensification of forage production in Mediterranean climates requires technological solutions that optimize the use of agricultural inputs. This study aimed to evaluate the performance of proximal optical sensors in recommending and monitoring variable rate nitrogen fertilization in winter forage crops cultivated under Mediterranean conditions. A handheld multispectral active sensor (HMA), a multispectral camera on an unmanned aircraft vehicle (UAV), and one passive on-the-go sensor (OTG) were used to generate real-time nitrogen (N) application prescriptions. The sensors were assessed for their correlation with agronomic parameters such as plant fresh matter (PFM), plant dry matter (PDM), plant N content (PNC), crude protein (CP) in%, crude protein yield (CPyield) per unit of area, and N uptake (NUp). The real-time N fertilization stood out by promoting a 15.23% reduction in the total N fertilizer applied compared to a usual farmer-fixed dose of 150 kg ha−1, saving 22.90 kg ha−1 without compromising crop productivity. Additionally, NDVI_OTG showed moderate simple linear correlation with PFM (R2 = 0.52), confirming its effectiveness in prescription based on vegetative vigor. UAV_II (NDVI after fertilization) showed even stronger correlations with CP (R2 = 0.58), CPyield (R2 = 0.53), and NUp (R2 = 0.53), highlighting its sensitivity to physiological responses induced by N fertilization. Although the HMA sensor operates via point readings, it also proved effective, with significant correlations to NUp (R2 = 0.55) and CPyield (R2 = 0.53). It is concluded that integrating sensors enables both precise input prescription and efficient monitoring of plant physiological responses, fostering cost-effectiveness, sustainability, and improved agronomic efficiency.

Changes in the climate have led to the occurrence of extreme events that threaten the production of major crops, namely that of bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Waterlogging imposed at the tillering stage can severely affect the yield, but several genotype features may counterbalance the negative impacts on yields. The aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of waterlogging on the number of fertile spikes, kernels per plant, and single kernel weight, as well as to assess the main culm and tiller participation in yields. We also investigated if the growth stages affected by stress would influence such traits. The study was conducted in climatized growth chambers using 23 genotypes from five distinct germplasm groups (Portuguese landraces, varieties with the introduced Italian germplasm, post-Green Revolution varieties with the introduced CIMMYT germplasm, advanced lines from the Portuguese wheat breeding program, Australian varieties). Variability was observed between and within the groups. Ten genotypes performed well under waterlogged conditions, showing promising results. Among these, GR-2 showed a rise in tiller yield, AdvL-3 in both the main culm and tiller yield, and the remaining ones displayed unaltered values in both the main culm and tillers. PL-1, PL-5, GR-1, GR-3, AdvL-2, Austrl-2, and Austrl-4 were able to compensate for the decreases observed for several traits, reaching harvest yield values that were unaffected in both the main culm and tillers. Rises in the tiller yield or in the tillers and main culm, GR-2 and AdvL-3 exhibited either stability or increases in all the studied parameters. Results also suggest a negative correlation between the growth stage reached during waterlogging and the effect of this stress on the number of spikes per plant, plant and tiller yield, kernel per spike (tillers), and single kernel weight (tillers). Our findings may contribute to a better understanding of wheat responses to waterlogging and to the development of solutions that mitigate the socio-economic impacts of 20–50% wheat yield reductions, thereby preserving the daily 20% supply of energy and protein required for human nutrition and global food security.

IntroductionBeing one of the “big three” most cultivated cereals in the world, wheat plays a crucial role in ensuring global food/nutrition security, supplying close to 20% of the global needs for calories and proteins. However, the increasingly large fluctuations between years in temperatures and precipitation due to climate change cause important variations in wheat production worldwide. This fact makes wheat breeding programs a tool that, far from going out of fashion, is becoming the most important solution to develop varieties that can provide humanity with the sufficient amount of food it demands without forgetting the objective of quality.Material and methodsThe National Institute of Agricultural and Veterinary Research in Portugal has carried out a long-term experiment (9 years) in different locations to test four different bread-making wheat cultivars, each representing important variations in germplasm. Wheat yield and quality traits obtained by official methods were recorded in 18 different environments regarding temperature and precipitation.Results and discussionAccording to the ANOVA and PCA, protein content, wet gluten, dough tenacity, and extensibility were found to be highly affected by the environment. Paiva cultivar presented a higher yield in almost all the tested environments, but its quality traits varied enormously. Contrary behavior was recorded for Valbona cultivar. Antequera cultivar, with a production ranging between 4.7 and 9.3 tons/ha and a protein content between 11 and 16.8%, seems to be the most resilient cultivar regarding both productivity and quality of the flour with reference to changes in the main climate traits. The most ancient cultivar, Roxo, released in 1996, showed the worst results in this experiment, supporting the need to continue working in wheat breeding to meet the unavoidable changes in the environment.

In Mediterranean farming systems, the semi-arid conditions and agricultural ecosystems have made site-specific management an important approach. This method aims to understand and handle the variability of soil properties and crop management, particularly through the utilization of geospatial information and accessible technology. Over three years in a 30 ha experimental field located in the Alentejo region (Portugal), crop establishment was monitored using data from soil apparent electrical conductivity (ECa), remote sensing (Sentinel-2), and in situ soil sampling. The procedure began with Step 1, involving the acquisition of soil spatial information and spatial interpolation. Subsequently, in Step 2, management zones (MZs) for soil characteristics were delineated using a combination of ECa measurements and soil analysis, and Step 3 spanned over three years of gathering meteorological data and crop remote sensing measurements. In Step 4, site-specific crop MZs were delineated by vegetation indexes (VIs). This article aims to increase the importance of in situ and remote assessments to more accurately identify areas with different productive potential. Results showed three MZs based on the percentage of sand, ECa, altimetry, exchangeable calcium, and exchangeable calcium properties, validated by crop VIs (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Normalized Difference Red-Edge Index (NDRE), and Normalized Difference Moisture Index (NDMI)) over time. Although there are many sensorial techniques available for site-specific management, this paper emphasizes a methodology for the farmer to identify different MZs combining remote and in situ evaluations, supporting new opportunities for a more rational use of natural resources. Based on soil parameters, three site-specific management areas could be selected. NDMI was the index that best explained the MZs created according to soil properties.

Nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) is a central issue to address regarding the nitrogen (N) uptake by crops, and can be improved by applying the correct dose of fertilizers at specific points in the fields according to the plants status. The N nutrition index (NNI) was developed to diagnose plant N status. However, its determination requires destructive, time-consuming measurements of plant N content (PNC) and plant dry matter (PDM). To overcome logistical and economic problems, it is necessary to assesses crop NNI rapidly and non-destructively. According to the literature which we reviewed, it, as well as PNC and PDM, can be estimated using vegetation indices obtained from remote sensing. While sensory techniques are useful for measuring PNC, crop growth models estimate crop N requirements. Research has indicated that the accuracy of the estimate is increased through the integration of remote sensing data to periodically update the model, considering the spatial variability in the plot. However, this combination of data presents some difficulties. On one hand, at the level of remote sensing is the identification of the most appropriate sensor for each situation, and on the other hand, at the level of crop growth models is the estimation of the needs of crops in the interest stages of growth. The methods used to couple remote sensing data with the needs of crops estimated by crop growth models must be very well calibrated, especially for the crop parameters and for the environment around this crop. Therefore, this paper reviews currently available information from Google Scholar and ScienceDirect to identify studies relevant to crops N nutrition status, to assess crop NNI through non-destructive methods, and to integrate the remote sensing data on crop models from which the cited articles were selected. Finally, we discuss further research on PNC determination via remote sensing and algorithms to help farmers with field application. Although some knowledge about this determination is still necessary, we can define three guidelines to aid in choosing a correct platform.

Inundation, excessive precipitation, or inadequate field drainage can cause waterlogging of cultivated land. It is anticipated that climate change will increase the frequency, intensity, and unpredictability of flooding events. This stress affects 10–15 million hectares of wheat every year, resulting in 20–50% yield losses. Since this crop greatly sustains a population’s food demands, providing ca. 20% of the world’s energy and protein diets requirements, it is crucial to understand changes in soil and plant physiology under excess water conditions. Variations in redox potential, pH, nutrient availability, and electrical conductivity of waterlogged soil will be addressed, as well as their impacts in major plant responses, such as root system and plant development. Waterlogging effects at the leaf level will also be addressed, with a particular focus on gas exchanges, photosynthetic pigments, soluble sugars, membrane integrity, lipids, and oxidative stress.

Bread wheat (Triticum aestivum) is a major crop worldwide, and it is highly susceptible to heat. In this work, grain production and composition were evaluated in Portuguese T. aestivum germplasm (landraces and commercial varieties), which was subjected to heat after anthesis (grain filling stage). Heat increased the test weight (TW) in Nabão, Grécia and Restauração, indicating an improved flour-yield potential. Mocho de Espiga Branca (MEB) and Transmontano (T94) showed higher thousand-kernel weight (TKW). Gentil Rosso presented increased soluble sugars, which are yeast substrates in the bread-making process. Ardila stood out for its protein increase under heat. Overall SDS was unaffected by higher temperature, but increased in T94, indicating a better dough elasticity for bread-making purposes. Under heat, lipid content was maintained in most genotypes, being endogenous fatty acids (FAs) key players in fresh bread quality. Lipid unsaturation, evaluated through the double bond index (DBI), also remained unaffected in most genotypes, suggesting a lower flour susceptibility to lipoperoxidation. In Grécia, heat promoted a higher abundance of monounsaturated oleic (C18:1) and polyunsaturated linoleic (C18:2) acids, which are essential fatty acids in the human diet. This work highlighted a great variability in most parameters both under control conditions or in response to heat during grain filling. Cluster analysis of traits revealed a lower susceptibility to heat during grain filling in Ardila, Restauração, and Ruivo, in contrast to MEQ, which seems to be more differentially affected at this stage. Characterization and identification of more favorable features under adverse environments may be relevant for agronomic, industrial, or breeding purposes, in view of a better crop adaptation to changing climate and an improved crop sustainability in agricultural systems more prone to heat stress.

Bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is a major staple crop, and more adapted varieties are needed to ensure productivity under unpredictable stress scenarios resulting from climate changes. In the development of new genotypes, root system traits are essential since roots have a key function in water and nutrient uptake, and root architecture determines the plant’s ability to spatially explore the soil resources. Genetic variation in wheat root system may be assessed at the early stages of development. This study evaluates in vitro and at the seedling stage, the genetic diversity of root growth angle (RGA), seminal root number (SRN), and radicle length (RadL) in 30 bread wheat genotypes from different origins and belonging to distinct evolutive or breeding groups. SRN and RadL were analyzed at 1, 2, 3 and 6 days after sowing (DAS) and RGA was measured through the angle between the first pair of seminal roots. A large variability was found in RGA values that ranged from 63° to 122°. Although differences were found between genotypes within the same groups, the narrower angles tended to occur among landraces, while the higher RGA values were observed in advanced lines and Australian varieties. Differences were also observed as regards the SRN (1.0–3.0, 2.7–4.7, 3.2–5.0 and 4.4–6.3 at 1, 2, 3 and 6 DAS, respectively) and RadL (0.1–1.5, 2.1–5.0, 4.0–7.5 and 5.1–13.7 cm at 1, 2, 3 and 6 DAS, respectively). Genetic variability in root traits at seedling stage allows more rapid selection of genotypes better adapted to environmental and soil constraints, necessary to Portuguese Wheat Breeding Program. It will also contribute to the definition of wheat ideotypes with improved performance under Mediterranean climate conditions.

Bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is a widely cultivated crop. Annually 10–15 million ha of this crop are affected by flooding leading to large production losses (20 to 50%). Intensive and unpredictable rainfall episodes are expected to increase due to global warming and more adapted varieties may help to cope with climatic changes. This work focused the effects of waterlogging on growth and development of four bread wheat genotypes from different origins. Plants were grown in climatized chambers. Waterlogging was imposed at the tillering stage and maintained for two weeks. Phenological observations through Zadoks scale, and relative chlorophyll content (SPAD) measurements, were performed during stress. Stress promoted different responses such as growth arrest, early senescence and no fertile tiller production, or growth enhancement through increased main shoot height and stable SPAD values, reflecting maintenance of photosynthetic ability. Each genotype’s capacity to contain progressive senescence induced by waterlogging was assessed through senescent biomass after stress and recovery.

Yellow rust caused by Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici, is a foliar wheat disease that cause significant yield losses in Portuguese bread and durum wheat yield, mainly in recent years. The strategies to disease control include cultural practices (crop rotation, use of balanced fertilizers, framework of planting dates), use of resistant varieties and fungicide application. The concern of modern plant breeding has been the improvement of new varieties with escape behavior to diseases and/or genetic resistance, but currently, the use of chemical produts offers a pratical and rapid response solution to combat rust outbreaks. In the present study, field experiments were conducted from 2013/2014 to 2016/2017 growing seasons to evaluate: 1) resistance levels against yellow rust in some bread and durum wheat varieties widely used by Portuguese farmers; 2) the opportunity of application of fungicide in the control of Puccinia striiformis in two stages of plant development; 3) gains obtained in each situation in yield and thousand kernel weight (TKW) compared to the control without fungicide application. This study allows to conclude that the need to use fungicide sprays it´s related not only on the carry over of rust inoculum in crop, but also of the races/strains of P. striiformis occurring in a region, the crop growth stage at time of symptom appearance and on variety level of resistance.

1. Endo-1,4-β-xylanase is known to improve the nutritive value of wheat-based diets for poultry by degrading dietary arabinoxylans. However, broilers' response to supplementation of wheat-based diets with exogenous endo-1,4-β-xylanase is not always observed. 2. In this study, 108 different wheat lots were analysed for levels of extract viscosity as well as for endogenous endo-1,4-β-xylanase activity, and the impact of these two variables in animal performance was tested. 3. Results revealed that endogenous endo-1,4-β-xylanase activity and extract viscosity content varied widely among different wheat lots. Thus, a trial was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of exogenous enzyme supplementation in broiler diets using wheats with different levels of extract viscosity and endogenous endo-1,4-β-xylanase activity. 4. The data revealed that exogenous enzyme supplementation was only effective when the wheat present in the diet had high levels of extract viscosity (14.8 cP) with low endogenous endo-1,4-β-xylanase activity (347.0 U/kg). Nevertheless, it is apparent that exogenous microbial xylanases reduce digesta extract viscosity and feed conversion ratio independently of the endogenous properties presented by different wheat lots. 5. The data suggest that extract viscosity and/or endogenous endo-1,4-β-xylanase activity affect the response to enzyme supplementation by poultry fed on wheat-based diets.

Europe accounts for around 20% of the global cereal production and is a net exporter of ca. 15% of that production. Increasing global demand for cereals justifies questions as to where and by how much Europe's production can be increased to meet future global market demands, and how much additional nitrogen (N) crops would require. The latter is important as environmental concern and legislation are equally important as production aims in Europe. Here, we used a country-by-country, bottom-up approach to establish statistical estimates of actual grain yield, and compare these to modelled estimates of potential yields for either irrigated or rainfed conditions. In this way, we identified the yield gaps and the opportunities for increased cereal production for wheat, barley and maize, which represent 90% of the cereals grown in Europe. The combined mean annual yield gap of wheat, barley, maize was 239 Mt, or 42% of the yield potential. The national yield gaps ranged between 10 and 70%, with small gaps in many north-western European countries, and large gaps in eastern and south-western Europe. Yield gaps for rainfed and irrigated maize were consistently lower than those of wheat and barley. If the yield gaps of maize, wheat and barley would be reduced from 42% to 20% of potential yields, this would increase annual cereal production by 128 Mt (39%). Potential for higher cereal production exists predominantly in Eastern Europe, and half of Europe's potential increase is located in Ukraine, Romania and Poland. Unlocking the identified potential for production growth requires a substantial increase of the crop N uptake of 4.8 Mt. Across Europe, the average N uptake gaps, to achieve 80% of the yield potential, were 87, 77 and 43 kg N ha(-1) for wheat, barley and maize, respectively. Emphasis on increasing the N use efficiency is necessary to minimize the need for additional N inputs. Whether yield gap reduction is desirable and feasible is a matter of balancing Europe's role in global food security, farm economic objectives and environmental targets.

Septoria leaf blotch and yellow leaf rust are the most important foliar bread wheat diseases that cause significantly yield losses in Portuguese wheat yield. In the present study, field experiments were conducted during 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 wheat growing seasons to evaluate the effect of a fungicide (Bixafen + Protioconazol) on septoria leaf blotch and yellow rust attacks on bread wheat. This evaluation was accessed by: a) checking the opportunity of fungicide application in two different phenological stages (GS 33-34) and (GS 43-44); b) analyzing the genetic resistance of each variety against the attack of these pathogens; c) finding differences on yield components (thousand kernel weight and grains/m(2)), grain yield and test weight when fungicide was applied one or two times, during the crop cycle. This study showed that: 1) susceptible varieties, with high levels of coefficient of infection, are beneficed with two fungicide applications, at GS 34 plus GS 47, with increases on yield components, yield/ha and test weight; 2) in moderate resistant varieties, with low levels of coefficient of infection, it is justified a preventive fungicide treatment at GS 34, to control the infectious focus and to protect leaves; 3) resistant varieties don't need a disease control, however, results showed that with two fungicide applications, grain yield and test weight increases significantly.

In the present study, the rheological and baking properties of blends containing bread wheat flour and durum wheat semolina were analyzed. Two bread wheat varieties (Almansor, Pirana), three durum wheat varieties (Celta, Helvio, Marialva) and two replacement levels (25 and 60%) were used to determine differences in dough behaviour and bread properties. These varieties showed difference in their properties, once they have different allelic composition for the most determinant loci to quality (Glu-1 in bread wheat and Glu-3 in durum wheat). The addition of durum wheat semolina to Almansor flour had a deleterious effect on the main all quality parameters. The dough stability and loaf volume of Pirana flour (weak bread wheat) could be improved when blends were made with Helvio's semolina. The replacement level of durum wheat in both types of blends increased alveograph P/L and yellowish crumb colour but decreased alveograph deformation energy W and loaf volume of blends with Almansor. This study showed the possibility of making bread with acceptable characteristics using mixtures of bread and durum wheats, although, can cause lower bread volume.