Author(s)

N.S. Al-Ghumaiz

Abstract

Qassim region is considered an urban, agricultural area in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This region is characterized by dominant arid climate. Low fertility soil is considered a major challenge for the sustainable cultivation of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). The objective of this study was to assess some agronomic characteristics of the wheat genotypes grown organically on low fertility soil. The experi- ments were conducted during the 2010 and 2011 growing seasons using eight bread wheat genotypes growing under conventional and organic farming systems at two different locations. measurements of the following parameters were collected: chlorophyll content, flag leaf area (cm2), and Harvest Index. Findings demonstrate a difference between the conventional and organic farming systems in terms of the parameters under study. Results showed that the greatest chlorophyll content was recorded in IC17 genotype (51.3 SPAD) Genotype Sids 12 had the highest FLA (28.0 and 26.3) under the conventional and organic farming systems, respectively. E-line and YR had the highest harvest index under the organic farming system in both the seasons. For sustainable food production in arid regions using the organic farming system, wheat genotypes YR and E-line could be the most suitable.

Keywords

arid region, conventional system, organic system, sustainable agriculture, wheat genotype.