Effect of Wheat Monoculture on Durum Wheat Yield under Rainfed Sub-Humid Mediterranean Climate of Tunisia

Abstract

Cultivating cereals in monoculture systems contributes to the decrease in grain yield and quality. Currently, under Mediterranean climate conditions of Tunisia, wheat mono-cropping covers more than 70% of cereal areas. In order to reveal the impact of this practice on cereal productivity, five improved durum wheat cultivars (Karim, Khiar, Om Rabiaa, Razzek, and Maali) were conducted under two conditions of previous wheat crop: one-year wheat previous crop (W) and two successive years (W-W). Then, they were assessed for grain yield (GY), yield components (NKS, TKW, NS), straw yield, harvest index (SY, HI), and grain quality parameters during three consecutive cropping seasons (2017, 2018, and 2019). The results showed significant effects of cropping season for all measured parameters, except thousand kernel weight (TKW). A significant effect (p < 0.05) of Pre-Crop was observed on yield components. However, grain yield (GY) was improved after one-year wheat Pre-Crop (W) (4082.3 kg ha−1) more than after two years (W-W) (3277.3 kg ha−1). Our results show that, based on the three-year experiment, almost all yield related traits were significantly affected by the genotype except HI and NS. The highest GYs were recorded for Om Rabiaa (4010.4 kg ha−1) and Nasr (3765.76 kg ha−1). All grain quality was significantly (p < 0.05) affected by cropping season, but only gluten content (GC) and vitreousness aspect (Vit A) were affected by genotype. On the other hand, the Pre-Crop W-W decreased grain protein concentration (GPC) (12.13%) and GC (22.14%) but no significant effect was observed on the Vit A of grain in our study. Furthermore, GY was positively correlated with HI (r = 0.64), NKS (r = 0.59), SN (r = 0.49), GPC (r = 0.23), and GC (r = 0.23). According to stability analysis, the Karim cultivar is the most stable genotype in wheat mono-cropping for GY and straw yield (SY). Altogether, this study provides useful information for farmers on how to produce a satisfactory yield for durum wheat cultivation under mono-cropping wheat conditions in the sub-humid environment of the Mediterranean climate of Tunisia.