New drought tolerant barley genotypes for the drylands of Egypt

Abstract

In West Asia and North Africa (WANA), barley grain and straws are the main feed source for small ruminants (goat and sheep), a valuable dietary contribution in rural areas and the principal economic output. In Egypt, barley is grown in irrigated areas (including newly reclaimed lands) and rainfed areas. Barley is the most adapted field crop grown under drought and poor soil fertility in rainfed areas in Marsa Matrouh and the North Sinai. The pastoralists living in these areas raise livestock (mainly sheep and goats) and grow barley for feeding (grain and straw) their animals. Salinity, heat and drought are within the most limiting production factors for barley growing in the country and only by growing resilient varieties will farmers in Egypt be able to improve their crop production and stability. For it, a partnership between ICARDA and ARC Egypt was establish to provide the Egyptian barley breeding program with new elite climate-smart and disease resistant barley genotypes for release or as sources of traits of interest. Following the Excellence in Breeding (EiB) recommendations, Product Profiles were designed in collaboration by ICARDA and ARC breeders. In the present research, we implement these product profiles by following one of the recommendations of EiB to increase the potential benefits and genetic gain of the CGIAR-NARS partnerships, that is, early in-situ testing of advanced genotypes to maximize the chances of selecting the most adapted germplasm. Thus, a Stage 2 trial of the ICARDA MegaProduct Profile Feed Barley for Arid and Semi-Arid Environments was selected to be tested under Egyptian conditions